The Week-End mini-Special – Part V

Its getting busier and busier here, and there is lot more to communicate.

Today I want to cover stuff of battery and some clarification on UI. But before we do that, there are two things I need to share:

There are so many reasons that why so many logos were not selected, like being similar to a lot of existing logos, extremely difficult to print in one-two color, using proprietary images from the net (serious issue), in-sufficient explanation when the logo was not self-explanatory, etc. You will find that many logos in the top 43 are not either perfect or better than the ones not in there. But the reason they are there is because they represent a very different concept, and if given a face lift, would be much better! My uncle used to say, “You should be disappointed at least for a while, when you don’t win, cos it shows that it was your genuine effort and you really loved what you did!”

The EAP. Probably we will have to do the closure earlier than on 3rd November because of the sheer entries and participation. We have got real serious people out there, and just after reading their application (and without even communicating back) it was sure that they MUST get the first Adams. What we are doing here is to talk to all of them personally and check what is the end use case, how can we work together and improve the current eco-system and Adam itself. If you have submitted your application and feel that there is still more you can add in the sections, or there is something missing, please do so, cos your words count a lot!

Now let’s get started on the mini-special part!

The Speakers!

I am also a musician (I play guitar and mouth-organ). And since starting it was extremely important for us to get the best sound to come out from Adam. And we think Adam has the best sound when compared to any tablet out there! You can easily watch movies on it without using any other speaker (that would mean that now more than one can enjoy the Media on the device if you are not closer to your home theater and it’s really important) or head phones.

Most of the small speakers falls in the category of syndrome called “No Bass Man!”. In simple words they have good treble but bass is just not there! You can generalize that small speakers will not have good response below 200Hz (it’s not manufacturing or speaker quality issue, there is a lot of physics and surface area properties involved). We have tried to resolve this problem by designing better speaker enclosure and using the body of the Adam itself as the resonator!

The battery!

The most power hogging elements on Adam are (in decreasing order) LCD, Wi-Fi, 3G, Speakers (in full power mode) and then CPU (Tegra). I am getting from more than 2 full days to minimum of 15 hours (on average which will some idle time as well) ! I am thinking of posting an interactive chart where you all can fill in details of how you will use it and then get the usage value out! Tegra consumes nothing for Open GL so it’s definitely a paradise for Gamers. I have seldom seen it crossing its 60-70mW line (idle) and touching 200-400mW for heavy usage. Adam has 24Whr, and you are bound to be extremely happy with its battery performance. On a comparison, iPad (couldn’t find other device to write here) has 25Whr, and gives you around 11-12 hour. On similar calculations Adam has 24Whr battery and consumers around 1.2Whr (on similar tests as mentioned on their website) and ended up giving 24/1.2=20 hours. (That’s why I want to develop that interactive chart which you can use and see yourself).

The USBs!

Its real fun and time saver to watch 1080p movies, videos, etc. (on device as reduced 1024 or on 48″ LCD TV, full 1080p via HDMI) directly from the USB without actually transferring it into the memory of Adam!

See an old image of Adam here. 2 quick USB connections and your keyboard and mouse are alive! Tablets are supposed to be independent devices. Not requiring a MASTER (PC) to get data from, get songs from, etc. And hence I/O ports are extremely important.

For the UI I am waiting for something very important to be done first. I read the comments on the Eden blog and wanted to clarify few things here. Eden has 3 panels. That would mean you can run 3 application which you can SEE. On the right and on the left there are as many applications opened as you wish! You just need to swipe across to access them. The Eden allows you to easily switch panels, so you have full control which one to view. You can set Application to auto open as panel when they have some notification, etc (like chat window).

Things are getting hectic here and I will start the next week-end special right now so we have actually something very special (that’s why we have “mini” in today’s header.

Battery life sounds great! Very excited for next weeks post, thank you for your dedication and getting this post out as well. Rohan, I’m not sure if you have seen my application yet, but I apologize for all the edits as I was having problems fitting everything I wanted to tell you in the application’s technology box. Please contact me if there is anything more you would like to see in the application, it would be very beneficial to our company to have early access to a device.

Also, I would just like to mention how excited I get watching my websites analytics data increase with users coming from this blog, as well as hits from Bangalore. We hope to have apps for everyone available as soon as possible.

The engineering is FAR ahead of the state of the market and I’m sure the logistics have been a huge challenge.

We wish you the greatest success and, no, this isn’t a schmooze about the EAP…hahahah.
We’ve been waiting for an all day WIFI/3G device with daylight capability and light enough weight for literally 10 years.

EAP or not .. if you hit anything near your specs in production, we’re in.

Alos, good to hear that the 3 panel issue is three VISIBLE panels. Looking forward to seeing more about the dev environment and how apps are switched from “simple” to “full” state.

Best of success!

BTW, we’re musicians and LOVE the idea of using the body as a bass resonator!

In one of your earlier posts you had mentioned about modifying the bezel to be thinner (i.e. have thinner black borders), and also sampling different screen finishes (to see what matte levels are good for viewing and I guess resistant against finger smudges).

If not an imposition, can you also share a little bit about any progress on these fronts?

Oh, there is one other use for the Adam that I realized will work perfectly. Sheet music! I’ve been picking up guitar lately (also play trumpet), and instead of using a lot of paper, the adam could be used to display the music! I believe it’s just thin enough to fit on my music stand as well. Plus, I can play the original music of what I’m trying to play to get a better idea of how to play it. OH MAN I CANNOT WAIT FOR THIS! :D

Thanks Rohan for for taking your time to write this post. It means a lot.
I happen to be up late tonight (working on writing/grading exams, etc.) and was delighted to read this mini special. Happy to confirm again that eden is what I expeted! Adam will be the tablet to buy by students specially (sorry, I’m being a little selfish here).

Anything you want! It essentially transfer your screen content (and music) to the HDMI output. You can choose to close Adam’s screen and work only on the big TV.

As a real world example, I play a game I love on 48″ TV i have at home with HDMI cable attached. Since all the sensors work on device, I use the Adam as remote (screen off) and TV for the superb graphics! :)

Theoretically it can act as your second monitor. Lets hope someone in the EAP develop these genes!
Regards

Heh, I googled “Exodus Apps” after seeing your shameless plug in one of your developer’s signatures on Sprint’s forums. I also love that feeling of seeing the analytic data, unfortunately awstats only updates once a day making me want to stay up far later than I should to see the updated statistics.

Oh, if I understand correctly, I can travel with the adam, and proof print jobs … if corrections are needed, no matter where I am, find a large screen TV, plug in and proof … oh, this would be a lifesaver !!!

I hope that the Three Panel (portrait view) system is somewhat CONFIGURABLE.
Essentially that means it will allow any panel to rotatated into a Landscape view. eg One panel vertically standing and other two horizontal…one above the other. It would be great to say check wikipedia and write a paper (In the two horizontal (Landscape) panels…and side by side keep an eye on the email/facebook app in the third vertical (Portrait) panel…
Rohan…I believe that a user should have te ability to get as much done in this three panel system and require opeing the full mode only if absolutly required.

On a side note …Is it possible to have Four panel open if the ADAM is held vertically? …in th portrait mode…It would be great to have that option…More panels… more apps …more utility …I dont think the resolution or detail will reduce much if four panels are available. (essentially 4 cell-phone screens) ….

Your uncle said it very aptly and nice of you to mention it here.
My wife is a freelance designer who had submited logos for the contest which didnot get selected and we think that some of her designs were much better than what got selected.

It is awesome to note the thoughts behind the processes and detailed work that has gone into designing even the smallest parts of Adam.

Great to hear about the audio quality. I was afraid that maybe the battery would impede bass resonance as the tube would be perfect for it but would be stuffed with that wonderful energy source. GREAT to hear about the battery life. And it’s great that I have properly understood all the prior comments you’ve made. Not just because I seem to be in tune and won’t be disappointed due to any misunderstandings but also because this way I don’t feel bad when I respond to others’ queries as it turns out I am not misleading them and am actually helping and clarifying.

As for the USB… my plan is connect a wireless mouse and keyboard set using one port for their dongle and the other one for a memory while connected to the tv. I’d have no need for a desktop or notebook&monitor setup and all the while I’d be consuming less power thanks to the Adam’s energy sipping design.

And glad to hear things are hectic. It’s what one would expect at this stage in the game. I just hope it’s good hectic and not bad hectic. Well, good luck Rohan ;)

some time back NI informed …
– FCC aubmission in 2nd week of Nov
– Launch (If I am not mistaken) sometime in Dec or at CES (Jan 06 2011)
– Work is a week ahead of schedule ..

Question..
Is the FCC submission now in the first week of Nov (or better yet ..last week of Oct)???
Any chance the lauch will be before christmas …I believe SANTA exists ..so it would be a nice gift …unless the reindeer (FCC) shows its horns.. lets hope not..

The battery life sounds excellent with 15 hours under heavy use. Is two days what you might expect to see if the Pixel Qi-equipped Adam is doing its best Kindle impression, displaying largely static content without the LCD backlight and without wireless enabled? Or might such light usage allow it to stretch even further?

Either way, with the amount of thought that’s going into this, the unparalleled technology in the hardware, and the general awesomeness that you’ve been presenting Notion Ink to be… I’ll be on the pre-order page as soon as it’s available.

Rohan –
As always top form in focusing on the details of the design. This week’s post held special meaning for me, as I’m a university professor and I plan to use the Adam often in my classes, both in conjunction with the existing A/V systems and as an independent media platform. My students and I thank you in advance!

Thanks for the update. My wish fulfilled. I do understand the pressure you are having through comments – I am one among them pushing on in every post. Hope this mini is not out it.
Now me having adam is a (++(++(++1))), but please some pics/video update (putting on pressure once again – can’t resist though).

I am eagerly waiting for the launch of Adam in India. Needless to say, I am pretty excited about it.

In your post, you mentioned that the Adam will be using its body itself as the resonator for better bass. That makes me a bit nervous. So, at the cost of sounding stupid, I would like to voice my concern. Will this not affect the motherboard components? I mean, if there is vibration, will it not cause some components on the motherboard become loose over time?

really nice update….i was really vexed with logo competition but u cleared evrytin…every time u come up with something u rocks……dude one more thing will u be providing a stand…i saw in the picture u placing adam against a wall……or please provide it in accessories ,This and a perfect protective cover/case is a must…..hope you understand…..i love it man…….

Thanks a lot for the update. very very good news up there.. I see that the adam is leaning against a wall. can we have a stand or something embedded into the case so that we dont always have to look for a wall keeping it farther and look for grip always so that it doesnt slip? Of course, that means that stand should work both on landscape and portrait mode and the weight (as you were shifting the center of gravity for your device) should also govern the position. I want to carry the least accessories with adam. so, if possible, pls embed it into the body. there are a lot of ideas for this. u can put a pen shaped metal rod and two or one hole to screw it up depending on the position. you can have a stand which would be applicable for both the positions to hold it at the same angle.

One question about the EAP. I am a java developer and am interested in android development. I have not used an android handset till now. but I want to make android app development as a hobby. Does all the people get the sdk before hand? can you make an emulator or something where we can test our apps? I do not know if I can make a good app but I have some ideas. After working on the sdk, can I send the app to get tested? is there a way to test the app myself before submitting?

I didnot input anything in the EAP because, I don’t know if my ideas are really possible through programming and how far I can pull them off. but i’ll try my best.

Hi rohan thanks for the update! Very much appreciated.
Regarding battery performance- you dont mention the pixel QI mode?
It is still going to be Pixel Qi right as this is very important.Just worried because you dont mention it. Thanks

I’ve just used an iPad for a day now, and have to say, there are so many things I’m already sick of. Getting my files on it was a pain (documents and PDFs), and hate the fact that if I have some book open, my chat client is in the background where I’m not even sure its working. Luckily, it’s someone else’s, and I didn’t waste any money on it.

Hate my logo not having made the final list. Really wanted an Adam. Will have to start saving up big time now.

I so wish I was an developer. I have seen the possibilties since Adam was first shown so I gues I have to long for my own Adam a little longer. But I will fly and buy when it´s out.
Give my best to the NI team.

Beauty. Thank u very much for posting.
i was really hoping you will do it even if today is sunday. so thank you again.

I like your weekend specials not only because it gives some numbers information but also
i get to know about some concepts working behind each components. As a phD student myself in Physics, i would love to hear more about the acoustics, and the power consumption stuffs like that. Also,perhaps since you have disclosed it, some day i would love to hear your music presentations either on net or live. I am from Kolkata and right now doing my graduate studies in University of Electro-Communications, Tokyo. So, if you happen to visit Japan, and if you have some extra time, please post it in the Blog, so that i can show you our university and my work on Atom light interaction studies using Optical nanofibers.

and dont mind please, i will request you not to again start teasing for next weekend specials, as it again raises the expectations, and due to your busy schedule if you miss the deadline, comments which helps nobody starts coming. If you prepared it, it is always good and if not, the added pressure of posting some specials is not good for you also.

About the power consumption and saving: On my Android “JuiceDefender” does wonders to my battery life. It disables wifi and other components based on a schedule and usage. I suggest looking into it! According to it’s own statistics it doubles the battery life and it really feels like it is doing it for real, not just displaying it ;)

Rohan would rather quit NI and go to the Himalayas for nirvana if we has to pull out Pixel Qi from Adam (till something better comes along?)… he is that serious about it from what he has told us so far.

About usage scenarios, I couldn’t find a definite source on what OS it is running on a short google search, but: Will there be capabilities for (at best handwritten) PDF Annotation? Major usage scenario for university usage to me…

which supports both CDMA and GSM technologies
So that it’s Europe or US or Asia wherever you are.. just insert a sim and ready to go ..
be it a AT&T/Cingular or Verizon/Sprint or in India Airtel/Vodafone or Reliance CDMA/TATA CDMA ..any type of service provider adam is ready for all..

i hope i am not late to bring in this to your notice.?. or may be your brilliant team had already planned this..
in either case pls do let us know as adam fanboys around the globe is waiting for it…

I hope Adam doesnt use toxic Brominated flame retardants and has recyclable components…Have read somewhere that magnalium melts at high temperatures, does that make it recyclable? the whole body is made of magnalium? i hope you are thinking of people’s health and the planet’s health while designing the adam!

I was wondering about the tagline for “adam”. Here a couple of suggestions

SOCIAL : Hardware, Software, Ideas

TECHNOLOGY: By the People, For the People (may be bit too much but creative people could chime in with other ideas)

But what is absolutely amazing about Adam; sorry – adam, is that you have taken input from social network. This is unusual and has not been done before on the hardware side. Usually, the likes of Steve Jobs are trying to cram their ideas down consumer’s throat!

Then there is facebook and twitter “social”

I think bringing out SOCIAL aspect of adam would be great to cover all aspects of human-machine interface.

I’m really happy about the battery life. My current laptop/tablet is pushing 5 hours and thats not enough for a full day at UNI. Glad to hear this last for a whole day!

I hope to hear some kind of new about inking on the notion ink in the next post. Although I’d still buy one if it didn’t have a stylus (theres the pogo stick and other capacitive pens), I’d prefer an official stylus (wacom!) to ship with it.

Either way thanks again for the nice mini-update. I can’t wait for the next update!

Thanks fo the update Rohan, the battery life makes me extreamly happy.
I believe External HDD also can be conneceted with Adam; is there any memory size limit? (like, can i connect a 1TB HDD!)
The onscreen keyboard is movable & scalable?

I’m sure I speak for everyone when I say thanks so much for taking time from your busy schedule to post this info for us.

I am thrilled that so much consideration and effort was put forth to give adam good sound quality. I’ve had a few notebooks with poor sound and it really was a big issue for me. I don’t know why so many other manufacturers neglect sound quality when multimedia functions have become so important. I’m glad Notion Ink is doing it right (like I knew they would).

I add my vote to the others that expressed a need for an accessory stand to hold the adam upright when used with a keyboard and mouse. I’d like to see some kind of small light weight portable stand I can take with me, and something I can leave on my desk at home that incorporates a dock connection that charges the adam and allows usb connections. So the keyboard, mouse, external drives, etc are plugged into the dock/stand and then I can quickly pop the adam in and out of the dock without having to reconnect each connection to the adam.

u mean like something in a swiss watch? interestingly I actually thought it does when I first saw the swivel cam… and was hoping we could control it’s movement via software…. may be something for adam2

I dont have much experience with Tablets but can we switch off the Wifi/ 3G as and when required?

Also, can one use voice services on the adam with the 3G card? ie can we use it as a substitute to the mobile phone?…i am really troubled with the issues of mobile phone radiation and i already feel its detrimental effects…i get dizzy when i speak on a mobile phone for more than 5 mins without the speaker on!

I follow up you Blog since CES 2010, and i have to say, how you are doing (status update,.. ) is the right way to build a community around notion ink (not only Adam)

Have you any spezial plans to sell your product in Europe? Generel Importer? Especially Germany and Austria.
I´m a young entrepreneur, from Austria and i´m interested to become a business partner. So please mail me some information about selling your product in those markets or if you have a partner for those markets!

Since the point of panels is multi-tasking and sharing between apps, it may be possible have a note-taking app(s) that run two instances side-by-side but work together as a single notepad. This would work within a three panel architecture.

I really can’t wait to get one of these in my hands.
Sadly, I am not a developer in the slightest. If only there was a need for regular users to put the adam through its paces.

The main reason I never got an iPad was that it just doesn’t do all of the things I would want to do with it. The adam sounds like it is going to do everything I need and more and it’s very exciting that you are designing a device with usability in mind, not just a slick and stylized device meant to make me “desire” it.

Oh, as an American, “By the People, For the People,” makes me think of a famous speech given by one of the presidents during our Civil War to dedicate a military cemetery. Blood and Gore and Death and the Adam. Might sell to heavy-metal fans, but no sense in limiting the market that way.

@ currently iPad doesn’t support multitasking/app switching. So I am not sure how you were reading a book while chatting. You didn’t know this before?

Multitasking/App switching will be coming to the iPad with iOS 4.2.

Yes, there are things that may sometimes drive a novice with the iPad. But a lot of it is because many don’t fully grasp the device. iPad is a strict content consumption device. Yes, you can attach a keyboard and do some content creation but that is not one of it’s strengths. For it’s weight, battery life, App Eco system, brilliant touch screen it is the best tablet in the market NOW!

I don’t really remember how much the Adam weighs because for me the iPad is already a little too heavy for holding with two hands for extended periods. Anything more heavier I would probably look at Sony VAIO ultra portables or a MacBook Air. I already have a i7 MacBook Pro, so I don’t need a tablet for serious computing.

I am thinking of buying a Kindle because iPad’s LCD screen is not ideal for reading in all conditions. Adam has a Pixel QI display which is awesome but what about the weight?

It is really difficult for any product to nail that happy medium because the tablet industry is not yet mature but we will get there very soon.

Great job with the Adam!!! i can’t wait till i put my hands on one!!!!
I am wondering two things,

1. what about bluetooth connection for wirelss headphones, keyboards, mouses? will this be possible for the Adam?

2. I know it will have slot for the 3G SIM, will the Adam be a n open device, meaning that i can buy a 3g chip in Mexico and use it right out of the box??? After all this “thinking in people wants” i don’t expect a NO for an answer , just wanted to make sure!!

Guys Keep the great work and please release the ADAM soon.. someone need to show APPLE how to be humble and do things the way they should be done … THE BEST YOU CAN AND TAKING CARE OF YOUR CUSTOMERS!!!

What are you doing with regards to mounting the tablet when using with a mouse/keyboard? Or possibly when using in a kitchen for recipe display (flat is hard to see sometimes, or one wishes to keep water away!). Or when using the webcam for recording.

Are there standard monitor stand mounting holes at the back (like for flat panel TV’s).

Is it possible to include a standard camera tripod mount screw along one or two edges? This then makes it possible to use standard little tripod stands, or bigger full size ones (maybe useful when videoing lectures, presentations). These could possibly also be used to attach heat dissipators to for extra cooling.

I guess it may be too late now or too costly to change the chassis now, maybe the next version. Personally would of liked a mounting hole for my mobile phone at times, specially for self portrait shots, or videoing random happenings.

It’s nowhere near something an artist could use properly. It’s just for business use, handwriting, notes etc. I don’t think it would work on Adam, as it would needlessly increase the price. Also, don’t forget that this is Android, and the Slate is Win7.

iPad’s main strength, as well as its main weakness, is that it’s a part of a large and incredibly expensive ecosystem. I don’t own Apple products (can’t afford them, don’t need them) so the many advantages an iTunes (*shudder*) user who already has a MacBook/iPhone/iPod (or in Jobs’ preferred case – all of the above) has are completely lost on me. I think it’s the same for many people.

For me, the desktop is still undisputed. I don’t get people who buy laptops as their only machine and keep them at home at all times, it’s insane. I already have a netbook, which is fine for most tasks, but a tablet would be even better in many cases. Adam’s specs and proposed price are simply perfect.

Holy shit, what an AWESOME idea! An app that does karoake-like highlights for sheet music, while playing it if necessary. Brilliant, absolutely brilliant; it’ll be the killer-app that guitarists would be looking for. :)

Haven’t found a bluetooth keyboard set that I like. Also it’d depend on just how many devices the Adam can handle connected via bluetooth as that can also be quite limited depending on the device. And I don’t consider it too much of a waste. What would you suggest takes the place of the keyboard set in the USB port?

that depends on carriers. As of yet we don’t know if the Adam will be tied to any specific carriers or if it will be a free agent. If it is tied to a specific carrier then there will most likely be set data plan options for the Adam. If it is a free agent then it will be a matter of what data plans you find and like (compatible with the 3G antenna in the Adam of course). This is one of the things Rohan has not mentioned, his partners (well, the details), which most likely means he can’t or shouldn’t. So, it’s a matter of being patient now and waiting till it’s time to release those details :)

Glad to hear about the battery life, being able to use it all day without worrying about your battery dying is really important for a mobile device. I think it is a great decision to make the Adam mouse+keyboard compatible- they work better than touch for some tasks (at least for now) and it would be hard to use the Adam as a true notebook replacement without them. Will Adam be compatible with standard USB flash drives?

Sounds like you’ve made some nice innovations with the Eden interface- looking forward to seeing more of it!

Thanks for this continuous discussion. It’s great to hear about Adam’s GUI, I/O and other details.

One aspect I’d like you to introduce us is the reading capability. How good is the Adam as a ebook reader? I have several friends looking for such device and I’d like them to go for the Adam if it fits their needs.

In this category, eye fatigue, battery longevity, resolution, software capabilities, available content are the key features. I think the Adam could compete against specialized devices (e.g. Sony eReaders), but I’d like to get your take on it.

Budo. I totally agree. It’s one of the reasons why the Apple TV doesn’t appeal to me and many others, the iTunes advantage is lost if you’re not a user already. And I always ask people why pay the premium for a laptop if they’re afraid to take it out of their homes to school or work, never understood that… :)

He might not finish it today but start it so that it will be easier to finish in time since they are getting more hectic every day, making it harder to find the time for the posts. Also even if he finished it today it would make sense to wait. That way he can post on a semi-regular basis and the blog junkies can get their regular fix ;) This way people can still be interested without complaining and harassing for more info. It works for everybody, we get more info on a regular basis so we don’t explode with anticipation and if things get too busy he has something ready to show us that even if he’s busy he hasn’t forgotten about us.

The possibility of adam being a sidekick to combine work, family, entertainment and social functions amazes me with each post. For work especially, Greg, your summation of the need for and the form of an accessory stand is perfect; thanks.

I have a 15″ core i7 MacBook Pro, 64 GB 3G+WiFi iPad, iPhone 4 and I just ordered a 11 inch MacBook Air. I also have a HP 180t Elite desktop that is simply incredibly powerful. Between all my portables, I very very rarely use my desktop at all. It just sitting there working as a iTunes server for my Apple TV. For what it can do, it is being very seriously underused. I know several people who are perfectly leading desktop free lives. If you have a powerful laptop then you just don’t need a desktop unless you have some serious computing/ Graphic design needs.

A MacBook or a MacBook Pro cannot override an iPad because they are built around completely different use cases. I believe the new 11 inch MacBook Air will pull all the people who are undecided about the iPad and who want to remain in the *Apple ecosystem*.

There are so many advantages to just pick one ecosystem and remain with it until the company completely goes bonkers. Be it Apple, Google or Microsoft. Nothing can beat an integrated experience but on the flip side it might also suck for the end-user because we are building virtual walls and it is 1980s all over again.

The advent of the Internet and the browser as an open, free and unlimited conduit helped bring about tremendous progress but now we are going backwards all over. So though iPad is contributing to this mess it is just the best available tablet now.

The onus is on other major players like Google, Microsoft to balance things but companies like Microsoft have been sitting on their lazy asses for a long time now. Microsoft has been applying lipstick on bloated pigs for a long time and it finally took the Vista disaster for them to wake up. I tried several Android phones and they all are absolute crap. Scrolling is just a nightmare on Android and the individual hardware companies (HTC, Motorola etc) are contributing a lot towards this mess with their customized UI layers that completely suck ( expect for Sense). Add to this the restrictions imposed by the carriers and the control they impose. Google is absolutely blind when it comes to UI design. They just want to make money through ads and they will do anything to penetrate peoples lives for some “adsense”.

I hope companies like NI provide a much needed kick in the butt and pull the industry back on track. What we are seeing now is a revolution in the consumer electronics industry and integrated experiences. I really want NI to be one of the big players in this new era not just with Adam but with a new vision and direction.

Its all the way at the end but he does briefly talk about artistic apps and shows off the responsiveness of adam. I wouldn’t count adam out of the artistic department, but I guess it remains to be seen in its current form.

“It’s one of the reasons why the Apple TV doesn’t appeal to me and many others, the iTunes advantage is lost if you’re not a user already”

Agreed. If you are not in the Apple ecosystem then Apple TV is not for you. Apple TV is for the millions of user who already have multiple iDevices and use iTunes for music media management.

“And I always ask people why pay the premium for a laptop if they’re afraid to take it out of their homes to school or work, never understood that… ”

Now this is absolutely ridiculous. Where did you get this from? You don’t see people carrying Apple portables because they are afraid? The world where I live in, people who purchase Apple portables carry them wherever they need all the freaking time. Many use cases and some do not. If someone buys any device and are really afraid to take it out then they must be living in a really rough neighborhood or they have a serious problem that needs to be looked at by a specialist. Either way you are talking about rare exceptions than the norm.

i was checking out ifixit’s post in which they ripped open the new macbook air (:D) and said there’s only one ventilation fan or something. which left me wondering – if the new mb air has no moving parts (flash storage), what is generating so much heat that they need a ventilation fan?

Have y’all looked at the Logitech DiNovo Edge? I have been using that for both my computer and TV for about a year now and find it works quite well for my browsing needs. I think that paired with the Adam would be a phenomenal combination.

My comment about laptops was about LAPTOPS/NOTEBOOKS, not macbooks (in other words ANY brand). This city is dangerous, everyone knows at least one person who’s been mugged, normally more. Some people are afraid to take their laptops out because they’re clumsy and want to avoid a mishap. And that was my point, if you won’t take it out why pay the premium for portability? Especially when they life in a small flat. Again so it’s clear, that part of my comment had nothing to do with Apple.

Great update, thanks Rohan! Great to hear about the battery life and the speakers, which are often a fail on mobile devices. Can’t wait for more info, especially pics and/or video of the UI in action. Here’s hoping for a U.S. release before Christmas! :)

Hi,
It’s nice to see that the adams is always more and more about to be released.

But I wonder if it’s going to be possible to take note, with a stylus, like with a notepad.
Because juste this point would be decisive for a student : will i be able to wrote something on my PDF during the lectures or not ?

I fear it’s not gonna be possible, because this would mean that the Adam won’t fit me.

I assume a charger will be included. We would be just guessing on anything else… An aftermarket capacitive stylus should work well. Search youtube for “drawing on iPad” videos to see how they work on apple’s tablet screen.

I’ve done some research and so far it seems the capacitive stylus made by Griffin/Boxwave/Targus (they are all the same) is the best. Targus is supposed to be the least expensive. Boxwave makes a few variations on theirs with a shorter model available as well as one with a pen on the other end for traditional writing on paper.

Dagi and HTC make one that is a little different and it is supposed to be good too but it requires you to god the stylus in a certain way (so the tip is perfectly flat on the screen at all times) to get it to work.

It would be cool if Notion Ink created a stylus with a place to keep it stored in a slot on the adam! One less thing to have to hang onto… Next best thing would be a case that offers protection, unfolds somehow to provide a stand to hold adam upright, and has a place to hold the stylus (all without adding a lot of bulk though).

Good question. I wondered that once but it hasn’t occurred to me since then. It’d be nice to know how long it has to be plugged in before it is ready to go. Though the good thing with a long battery life is that at least if you only get time for a partial charge is that it should tide you over.

Why of course? I don’t believe Rohan said it would be possible. And android is meant for a touch interface. So there was no guarantee that it would work with a mouse and keyboard. I would imagine NI had to write drivers for them. I doubt Google put a mouse pointer in android. So they would have to write that stuff in.
Someone in another post had asked if you could attach an external dvd drive. And I sad the same thing. Won’t work without drivers to recognize it.

Based off of the android tablets I’ve seen you should be able to turn off wifi/3g.

What type of voice services do you mean? Do you mean taking the sim card out of a phone and using the voice minutes or do you mean something such as skype over 3g? Not sure about voice plans but I have seen skype over 3g working.

@VB yes you are right! in the specs of adam there is no video-in but we have usb ports! with a not really complicated program in C/Java using usb port as communication interface we can do it, we already to it for some other special device! but before saying that it is possible to be done we need sdk to test it and complete it and after that we need adam to importe and retest it! you have a similare case in IPad ;)

best regards
Pj

PS: its my third time i send this answer hope it will work this time :D

Hello Rohan! Being a student in manufacturing engineering, i am interested in the life cycle of the adam. And I’ve always wondered what happends with all those units that are built in the pilot production stage (like the units with the overpainted bezel) and the ones in the prototype stage.

Earth to billreyn: we now have this technology know as “bluetooth” and also the purpose of those ugly USB ports is to connect input devices like a keyboard.That’s why it’s not really “news” that you can connect a darn keyboard.

Also it looks like you have a lot of catching up to do, so you are cleared to land anywhere anytime.

this sounds awesome I am glad you were able to meet your goal on battery life after hearing this the Notion Ink Adam is back on my purchase list. Is there any word on linux as a second OS and I am also wondering about the use of an external hard drive.

I would love to be apart of the interactive chart for the battery usage and to help give real world feedback as to how the device’s battery would fare against my personal daily usage.

Also I would like to mention that I am looking for a tablet device to use as a blueprint viewer. I will be building my house in a couple of years and I would like a device to be able to get rid of paper blueprints and use this almost exclusively. If there is a button slash icon within the image viewing application to allow the image to be made the real or actual size, then I could measure things that are on the screen in the same way you would measure a real blueprint.

Obviously scale would be an issue but I think that can be worked around. Especially if there was a dedicated application that helped you to scale the image. For example, you load the image and tell the application what the current scale of the image is, and then you can zoom in and out and the program would continually tell you what scale the image is at that zoom level. Of course having a larger screen would be really nice (15 or 17 inch) so that you can be more accurate by not trying to measure a tiny distance on a 10 inch screen. But thats for the next iteration of Adam!!

Thanks for the update and God bless you guys and your work,
Daniel Clem

Well….personally, I would like the Adam to have a good audio card so that it can give an awesome Headphone Experience!!
Speakers are used by the most only while partying, watching movies/playing games(if they dont have headphones) while most of the Serious gamers i know, have high end headphones!!
Also, having such a superb battery life is super cool……Cause, my lappy gives me 1-1.5 hr of gaming/wifi!
and Full HD experience on a tablet will be just amazing!!Just download or upload videos/pics and play in HD :)!!
Thanx Rohan& team for bringing The TABLET!!
Can’t wait to get my hands on it(have registered for the EAP ;))
MAnan

But I would like to know how long the Adam will survive in video mode…
If it was possible to really get 5 or more hours it would be really cool : aboutly two films, it would be impressiv for such an engin, wouldn’t it ?

Can we get a little clarification on google android marketplace support for Adam? In previous comments some people say there will be access, and some are saying Google does not give permission to the android market to devices which are not mobile phones. Can we get an answer either way (or the answer that this hasn’t been decided/finalized yet)?

It was my understanding from reading previous posts that the whole point of the new 1/3 screen multi-tasking format in Adam was to accomodate small format apps in the android marketplace. This is from the old post on the UI: “Panels also allow you to now work on the application which currently exist on Android Market. Since they were made for mobiles, just enlarging (2x) them doesn’t make any sense. So now you can run them in a panel without any pixelation.”

If there’s no marketplace, and only Genesis, then this doesn’t make sense to me. If there is only Genesis then people couldn’t just copy their small format app from marketplace to Genesis because of its exclusive distribution clause (at least this is my understanding). So if they had to rewrite the program specifically for Adam to put it in Genesis, they would just write it to Adam’s screen size specs, and you wouldn’t have the small-screen app problem.

Any explanation for this? *Hopefully* there will be marketplace access for “non-Adam” apps, even if all Adam specific apps have to be accessed only through Genesis.

This is definitely the way to go for a startup company/app store, because I’d much rather be tinkering with 100′s of 1/3 size marketplace apps that i’m familiar with while I wait for Genesis to be populated, than have only a few good finished programs to use at the begininning.

Alienware 17″ laptop with Core2Quad and 3750 X2 Graphics Cards only gives 1.5 hours of battery playing time. It’s only a year and a half old, so not an antique by no means. Gaming to me is hardcore 3D intensive; CnC4, Fallout 3, etc, not iPhone app gaming or stupid flash games (Farmville).

Earth to tintin: Your comment accomplished nothing but to be condescending and arrogant. Drivers don’t write themselves and isn’t like he was going “omfg I dint no its do dat” he was just glad it does.

On a side note I’d rather have a couple usb ports over having to use ugly proprietary adapter for everything except the proprietary adapter.

“There’s an app for that” because otherwise popular basic sites would be out of reach.
“There’s an adapter for that” because we know you can’t resist paying even more for the apple logo=P

USB is a definite plus and the thing I miss the most on my iPad, but anyone building a tablet should learn from the most popular tablets out there. I’m interested in knowing how the market will work too! Hooingto get my hands on a galaxy tab next week :)
Also battery of 15-16 hours, well done!
Any comments on how this’ll work with a External 1080p monitor?

Like others I would love to know if you have added bluetooth keyboard support? It would be nice to have it as an option so a laptop can be left behind entirely and I’ve seen some very nice iPad accessories that have a case and bluetooth keyboard combined.

Hello, Any news on when the adam will be released for the uk? Will it be possible to preorder? Why do we have to wait for Fcc certification for outside the US? Sorry about so many questions but I am partially sighted and this will be a godsend for what I need. Ereader and pixel qi screen (to make ebooks easy to read). I would even offer to test. You probably haven’t had many visually impaired testers yet! I could be wrong though!

will it be possible to connect the adam to a tv/ monitor via HDMI AND use the adam as input device (keyboard), while viewing the actual programs on the tv/ monitor?
Coupled with a wireless hdmi dongle, this would open up quite a few possibilities…

Frankly I dont think adam would have ‘great’ artistic/stylus capabilities. Else they would have boasted about it already.. At least after numerous similar question. But surely I too do hope it comes out usable.

Yeah, each one has it’s advantages/disadvantages. The Targus et al one is less precise due to the way the foam tip shifts. The HTC one is more precise predictable but it as you said requires to be held perfectly at all times. Then there’s the middle man of the o stylus which is more precise like the HTC one and actually lets you see where the “invisible tip” is (it essentially uses a hinged washer to interact with the capacitive screen and the center of the open space in the washer is where the “tip” is). It is also more flexible than the HTC ones as it has the hinge mechanism though you still have to make sure it is flat on the screen. The downside? The current version costs 75 dollars plus 7 in shipping…

As for the secret sensor being an active digitizer? I think it’d be great but not that likely as that would mean a special pen and increased costs. I think the tech would be a great option like the choice between Pixel Qi and normal LCD in future gens.

I could imagine an excellent use for this. Have one panel with the sheet music and another showing which key on a keyboard would correspond to that note. And possibly a metronome to help keep time in the third panel. I would bet that somebody could use a mic input to detect notes from the keyboard to move the music forward or perhaps even use some sort of midi interface. I’m not a developer so don’t expect me to try and make this, but if someone makes it I promise not to try and sue for taking my ideal. Just throw my name in the credits and I’d be ecstatic.

I’m guessing as they are trying to be pretty open with this product that there will be an easy way to gain root (or possibly even have it as a built in option) At that point I think it’d be trivial to sideload a wireless tether app from the android market. All this is pure speculation mind you.

Capacitive styluses are actually worse than real fingers. If device don’t support fine-ended (and precise, there are capacitive styluses with fine tip but their accuracy is very bad) stylus it’s useless for handwriting.

@Andrew, in the previous blog post comments someone had posted a link to an interview of Rohan where in there was a mention of a ‘water’ sensor. I don’t know how much of that will come to pass in reality. I guess we will have to wait for Rohan to feel comfortable to talk about it. Also, the list of sensors mentioned in the specification at notionink.in does not list any ‘unnamed’ sensor either. But keep in mind that the specification page probably needs some updating with any variations / deviations from the original specifications.

Exactly Bill. Without driver support it doesn’t matter if you have every I/O port imaginable. Then there’s the fact that it’s not so easy to install new drivers as with Windows. Most hardware manufacturers provide drivers for Windows (and almost as many for macs). On regular Linux that’s not a problem as they have very good driver support built in but Android is not Linux, only Linux based. There have been comments in reviews of other tablets of compatibility issues with USB devices. The only thing that would warrant “of course” is the video on Technoholik from way back where Rohan mentioned keyboards and mice as one of the reasons for the USB ports.

tintincub, you’re being kind of mean. There is no need to be so demeaning. We never did know about mouse capability before, something that doesn’t seem would work out of the box of android. With a bluetooth keyboard you need to power your keyboard with some sort of battery, now you can power the keyboard via the usb. You actually have to break open your android phone and tinker with some stuff for it to give power to a keyboard plugged in via mini-usb.

If you watch the video where the interviewer is trying out the trackpad the finish of the hardware Rohan is holding looks pretty good and complete ( including the metallic color, the look of the grill on the curve, and the smooth transition at the back where the curve meets the back of the device above the trackpad).

Sounds like it is time for you to learn to love RSS feeds. I didn’t like them the first time I tried them, but they save so much time. Check out google reader. When there is a new post for any site you subscribe to is just shows up in your list. No visiting each site hoping for an update.

@Erik, does that surprise you? Tintin is the resident troll. He already drove off Crystal because he was so demeaning. And another poster was ready to beat him up. Tintin seems to believe he is smarter than he is. Why? Because he owns Apple products! It must not have occurred to him that the usb ports might only be for external storage. The bluetooth could have been only for wireless headphones and transferring files. Just having those does not mean the operating system will recognize everything plugged into them. I am also surprised he hasn’t gone off on a rant of why you would need them. This is the age of touchscreens! Why would anyone use a mouse and keyboard!

I am a fan of technology. If I were only an Apple fan then why would I be so frequently visiting this blog? As Holmes would say “Elementary my dear Watson”.

Also, I don’t understand where exactly I jumped all over Raveesh. I just said that iPad doesn’t support any sort of multi-tasking, so I was just curious to know how exactly he was chatting and reading a book at the same time.

I really don’t sweat defending valid criticism of any product. I just point out the misnomers and misconceptions of people and during the process I might burst the rose colored glasses of the Kool-Aid drinking population.

billreyn, sorry if I woke you up from your dreams. You can now go back and fantasize about some cutting edge USB 2.1 ports.

After following Adam for a year, and silently reading blog posts (and drooling), I finally feel the need to say: Thank you, Rohan, Thank you. Never have I been so stimulated by a tech product that I’ve felt a need to write a comment about anything, anywhere. So again, Thanks :)

hey, rohan and team!
really excited to hear about the excellent battery performance, and already read the engadget article about it.
i’m just wondering why haven’t you guys started working on the advertising part…
you’ve got so much going for the adam, specs and unique UI, and i’m sure you guys, as well as us fan-boys, would love nothing more than to see the adam idea spread like wildfire, even before it’s launch. every day that goes by, more i-pads and galaxy tabs are being sold world-wide. the right advertisement would make potential tablet buyers to think twice about the right tablet for their needs, with the widest functionality spectrum.
for your consideration,
regards from israel.

I can’t imagine how a mic-input could change pages – you’d need an app to convert the acoustic info into something that corresponded to sheet music, and the highly sophisticated programs that do this are far from 100% accurate (and are way more developed than anything likely to be found as a tablet app). You couldn’t depend on them in an actual performance. If you were playing a midi instrument, you could send midi signals and somehow coordinate that with the sheet music, although not if the sheet music were a pdf; it’d have to be something midi-readable like a Sibelius file. And of course, you’d have to adjust it somehow to turn at the right place, which for most musicians is not exactly at the end of the page but a little bit before it.

MUCH simpler would be to use an external trigger to send a signal to turn the page. Could be a MIDI foot pedal, for example. Could be just something vaguely resembling a mouse you can stomp on to hit the “next page” button, though; doesn’t have to be complicated.

the batteries have their own maturity index! sort of… we have to milk’em and goad them a bit before we exploit their full potential; but letting them drain out completely is not ideal… assuming the charge-indicator is a reasonable guide, we should let’em drain out 80 to 85% before recharging and dont be surprised if you cant get the indicator upto 100% full for the first few recharges (upto 10 times)

no science this just my experience with using various types of batteries across 2 dozen gadgets… now thats one of the reasons most of us are here I guess… like may be to use some of that battery juice to hopefully make coffee or shave as we drive to work

Oooh, one other thing I am curious about is how well game pads will be supported (be it via bluetooth or usb). Given the gaming aspects of the Tegra 2 and adam it could be great if there was game pad support so that you could hook it up to a tv and play from the couch.

Tintin, it’s not just what you say but how you say it and you tend to be aggressive. And let’s face it, you’ve directly attacked/insulted billreyn twice on this blog posting without his having aggravated you (and your acting as if it’s obvious is ridiculous, remember how earlier iPhones didn’t support stereo bluetooth despite having bluetooth?).

As for the blindly defending Apple, maybe it has to do with many comments. For me a giveaway of your love of Apple (aside from your list of Apple devices with the exception only being used as a server for said apple devices) is how you took my comment about laptops in general and used it as an excuse to defend buyers of all apple portables when I wasn’t even talking about that.

Lithium rechargeables shound’t be completely discharged or completely recharged on a regular basis according to various sources. Also they should never be stored long term fully charged (for storage a charge of 40-50% is best. You should always be able to get the indicator up to 100% unless they’re damaged or REALLY old. Also with a few exceptions most lithium based rechargeables lose about 10% of the full capacity per year (there are some newer ones that have a GREAT lifespan and still work to full capacity after 3 years. As for the whole charging and discharging several times before it works “properly” normally has more to do with the device being properly calibrated (one reason it is recommended to let the batteries on your device fully run down once a month.

For the record nickel cadmium or nickel metal hydride batteries should always be fully discharged and fully charged or you get the “memory” effect.

I’ve read there is an accelerometer and proximity sensor as well as ambient light and water sensors. How do all these play into what you want to do with the device?
There are generation and series of devices and each one will take advantage of each. There is a huge inter-relation of UI and these sensors, but I should be tight lipped here.

Personally I have no idea what they would mean by a water sensor (though I am mildly curious). The only things that occur to me are either completely unrealistic and sci-fiey (that if the adam detected humidity it’d seal itself off like the batmobile :P) or practical but still something I’ve never heard of (if it sensed water inside itself it would shut off to avoid any short-circuiting and damage.

[Interviewer:] I´ve read there is an accelerometer and proximity sensor as well as ambient light and water sensors. How do all these play into what you want to do with the device?
[Rohan:] There are generation and series of devices and each one will take advantage of each. There is a huge inter-relation of UI and these sensors, but I should be tight lipped here.

Personally I don’t know what they’d mean by a water sensor. Only two ideas come to mind. One is completely unrealistic, impossible, and very sci-fiey: as soon as any excess humidity is detected the adam seals itself off like the batmobile :p
The other is more feasible and practical but I don’t know how realistic it is: if the adam detected moisture inside where there should be none it’d turn itself off to avoid short-circuiting and water damage. I don’t really expect either one to show up and have no idea as to what the mystery sensor is but can’t wait to find out :D

My laptop gets 1 1/2 hours word processing with wifi off. It is a Dell Inspiron 1545 and I got it last year. I wish it’s battery could last longer but it definitely does not belong in a n antique shop.

I think that’s meant as bluetooth 2.1 WITH A2DP support. A2DP was actually quite rare among phones and dongles for a while, remember the iPhone and how it just wouldn’t let you use A2DP along with cut and paste? As for bluetooth keyboard support, the important thing is not only having it but it being good. It sometimes happens that there is some discrepancy in the character mapping between the built-in bluetooth stack and the device. Occasionally this means a wrong letter or accent but most often it means specialty keys or function keys don’t work as they should.

Not just here but it has become really cool for absolutely everything these days. Your puppy just crapper all over your carpet? It’s all Apple’s fault. So excuse me if I misinterpreted your comments.

Now, coming back to why people would _any_ portable if they don’t want to carry it outdoors- it’s because they don’t want to be tied up to one desk all the time. With a portable, they can work in their living room watching TV, work on their bed during night so on and so forth. I guess you got the idea.

My job requires me to do some complex programming stuff and guess what people like me are using? Yes, laptops. Desktops as we know them are going out of casual to medium use case business.

I’ve never posted a comment on any of these updates. That’s just the kind of person I am. And while I don’t expect a direct reply, could you post some more software information in a future blog? I love the Genesis and Eden ideas, they sound awesome. But my biggest fear is that I’ll be running an Android 2.2 OS on a tablet with a bunch of very poorly spaced smartphone apps.

I’ve heard rumors that you guys are trying to make this thing future-proof to Google’s Android 3.0 update, but that doesn’t mean all will be well. If we’re being honest, I love my iPad. I wanted an Adam, but I couldn’t wait. That said, I’d gladly sell my iPad to get this, but I would love to have some sort of assurance that the UI is going to be really smooth.

Everything else looks good, from the hardware to the battery life, to the options, to the Eden concept. But none of it matters if we’re still running a smartphone OS that’s wildly spread out and ugly looking.

@tintincub
my iPad does support multitasking/ app switching. use backgrounder, proswitcher, multiflow….mobile substrate extensions are great.(yea, jailbreak it!)
But it still don’t serve the purpose, i really dont like it much. weight is still OK, may crump ur left thumb on long use or on games.
In my room it shows wifi signal “poor” or “good” where iphone and asus note book show excellent..
Just as their logo mentions ” you buy an apple, but only able to have a piece of that, the rest is locked by the farm”

I didn’t have any problems with my WiFi. I travel frequently and I never experienced any problems in hotels too. So I don’t know what’s going on with you.

I jail broke my iPad a while back but the experience was extremely crappy. iPad has 256 MB RAM so unless multi tasking is properly built Its not going to be pretty.

The problem is we don’t have better alternatives at this point. Apple has really kick started a market segment and hopefully we will find better choices soon. It’s been around 6 months since iPad was released and still there are no viable alternatives let alone better alternatives.

It will be using Android Froyo 2.2 with the Notion Ink layer Eden which will enable the panel style multi-tasking mentioned in a previous blog entry (I think weekend update III).
As for the pdf annotation I hope so but don’t know if any existing android apps support it or if NI will be bringing out their own app with the capability. Or maybe one of the devs, especially those in the EAP will help us out on that front.

I’m sorry, been editing other people’s articles all day and am brain dead, but when I started reading these and came to your ‘If the screen gets wet, then there is water.’ I just laughed my A off for 10 solid minutes. I know what you meant and I mean no offense whatsoever, but just the thought of a ‘built into hardware, OS independent’ indicator of water being a wet screen. Again, I’m sorry, but Gawd you made my day. Unless, of course, you actually meant it the way I took it, in which case you are a clever, clever writer. That’s it; nothing meaningful to contribute on my part; already wrote the check to NI and pen is poised over the date and amount field, fingers turning blue at this point…

The device will supposedly be available to developers starting mid-November, so I doubt they would prolong the FCC submission for too long after that. Hopefully, US and Canada orders can be placed in December. I want to see the Adam in my hands at the latest in January. I hope Notion Ink has some serious plans for promotion and advertising, and I think getting a nice big venue during CES for the final unveiling would be perfect…

Headsets yes, the rest we’ll have to see what the bluetooth stack supports (I say headsets yes as A2DP is mentioned in the specs list).

The 3G depends. We don’t yet know. If they have a deal with the CDMA carriers in the US you could import it and use with Iusacell’s BAM. If they make it compatible with AT&T then you can use it with Telcel or Movistar. If they make it compatible with T-Mobile US 3G then that 3G won’t work in Mexico. But that’s information we don’t yet have. Hopefully the radio will have multi-band coverage and will work with the main needs of most people or people will have the choice of different flavors.

They will be using their own UI meaning it will look good. Also it’s been stated that the UI will be hardware accelerated by the GPU meaning it should be buttery smooth. Then we have Eden to cater to mobile apps not tailor made for the Adam (look at Weekend Update III for further details).

I recently visited Best Buy for a hands on experience with the Macbook Air. The speakers were complete crap. You could barely hear them. I tested an iPad and it sounded 100% better. So I’m glad ‘adam’ will have decent speakers!! Cool

I have my macbook hooked up to my Vizio 42″ TV with the screen turned all the way to black and use my HDTV as monitor. I have to have a special adapter for that of course, $29 :). I’m so looking forward to being able to buy a Tablet that is also a real computer.

Once Adam is out for those lucky ( Deserved!!) 200, then i think there wont be any aspect of it which will remain undisclosed (except for the release date ofcourse ). As the EAP will start from mid Nov , i m sure by then Rohan will disclose everything regarding Hardware specs, UI etc cause after that there wont be any need .. :) I am sure that Rohan will have a lot to share in this month time …. waiting eagerly ….

With all due respects, I believe it’s the wrong way to approach ADAM. Because ADAM has its own SDK/ UI/ extra-fittings, it’s only loosely-coupled with the ‘official’ Android releases. As it should be; Android may be a great OS, but there’s no reason why all hardware manufacturers should rely on Google to provide awesomeness.

This is, in fact, similar to how it is with iPad and iPhone; while the OS for both devices is nominally the same, the reality is that there distinct differences in flavour and taste, apps (you really dont want to run iPhone apps on the iPad; you want iPad apps) and even features (iOS 3.2 versus iOS 4.1 now)

So don’t think ‘ADAM is on Android 2.2′. Say, ‘ADAM is on EDEN’. More realistic this way. :)

I sure hope the adam will llive up to my expectations…Its finally time for a tablet thats actually useful and handy…go get us the best quality possible, even if its more expensive…If i want some half ass product i´d buy something else right now not wait for the adam…cheerio

“..the iPad is already a little too heavy for holding with two hands for extended periods.”

confused..are we?
— clip —
I’m very sorry that you are confused. Please read the sentences, the 1st one states quite clearly ‘best tablet in the market NOW’. So it is not perfect but it is available – you can buy it. At the moment you can not buy an Adam.

Don’t get me wrong, I have been waiting for Adam since the CES presentation but as long as it is not available I still consider it vaporware.

@Tarwinia you might just be thinking of the iPhone I’ve had phones with A2DP support years before the iPhone had it! That’s typical of the iPhone though years ahead of the rest in many ways but years behind in others.

What I’m looking for is support for the HID bluetooth profile which would enable keyboards and mice. We know from this update that there are drivers for these which handle the mappings you’re talking about but you can’t connect them up without the HID profile.

Its maybe not a deal breaker but it would be great to have as not having to deal with wires is to me always preferable.

id we get adam i think it will change our life style i think we will use laptop alot lesser and more of the adam but nice to know that now everyone is going with the flow of apple trying to convince that this is the best hardware we can get i think there are alot of people with brain out there

So far there has not been any mention of any non disclosure agreement. I wouldn’t be surprised if one was required. Just look at how the long box comic app video came out of nowhere. Tge EAP welcome letter in a previous post mentions some devs have units but as we can tell no leaks have emerged.

I agree with this list completely. At least a start would be the first No. on your list but really if we are to hold on and wait for the adam we need to know all these things you mentioned!
I love getting the updates- they are very interesting bur i think now we need to actually see it in action rather than drip feeding us bits of information!!

Hey,
What if theres no wall around to prop up the tablet (as seen in image here)???….or i just want to watch a long movie (i.e. not holding it up in my hand all the time)?…. Is there gonna be something like a prop or an inbuilt stand (behind)?

It was quite old 30th jun interview, so do not know it still exists or it was just some speculation.
but was quite excited about it on reading it and posted it in this blog. Rohan did not confirmed it.

by the way, several interesting things was discussed in the interview.

Although you have asked Rohan, and he is the best person to give you a reply but i will try to answer little bit from the information Rohan gave till now, scattered here and there in his posts.

Since the device will be primarily used for ebook reader, go for pixel qi screen, as with back light off, it almost acts as an e-ink with high resolution (if i am not wrong somewhere 3000 by 600). quite good resolution. and with back light off, good for eyes (that depends on the ambient light conditions, for night time reading some amount of back light is needed). the adam has an ambient light sensor, it should help in that direction. eye fatigue depends mainly on the surrounding light conditions and how well the device brightness adjusted to that. so you can expect a good experience with the options available on adam , both for daylight and night time reading.

battery life just for reading with the screen not totally bright, i think it will cross definitely 2 days if not more, as Rohan gave some ideas in todays post.

Wait! I have not told you the MAIN advantage.

The Notion ink S/W team has made some progress regarding increasing the contrast ratio for the pixel qi screen. This point is very crucial as i was actually worried about after reading in many places that when you put a capacitive touch screen interface on the pixel qi screen, the screen losses some contrast especially in back light off mode, as there will be no light assistance any more. so increasing the contrast is an important factor. hope the NI team has pulled it off well.

Regarding available content, i have read in slashgear probably, the genesis store will have some collaborations with book store content providers and they will price it quite aggressively. and regarding the comics reading, Long box collaboration is there but they are also a startup and they are trying to increase their own contents (even though they have BOOm studios and Topcow, they need 4 major additions namely the DC, Marvel, Dark Horse and Image comics).

i hope the info. above is almost correct and will help you and your friends.

Two things, Longbox has Image (remember that Top Cow is part of the family). As for the others we’ll have to see how open they are to working with Longbox.

Pratik, the colour resolution is 1024×600. Each of those pixels is made up of the RGB subpixels. When it goes into monochrome mode each of the pixels used for red, green, blue then becomes an independent monochromatic pixel effectively tripling the horizontal resolution =)

yes,thats going to be the difference between boys and men.
it can absolutely change the game in favour of NI
and
i do believe NI most probably has “Ace of Spades”.
time will tell.
but the big guns are not going to be silent would they.

@James, oh yeah, my response was more to billreyn though it turned out it was msotly unnecessary as it seems his statement was not his interpretation of facts but rather stating the worst case scenario. And yeah, the HID profiles we won’t know until someone gets their hands on it and gives us that info. Hopefully one of the EAP people will be able to tell us without breaking any confidentiality agreements (I doubt that piece of info would be a problem). As for the phone, the iPhone was just the most notorious example. And I know what you mean, I’ve had an A2DP capable phone since 2005 (Motorola’s first if I remember correctly), but not all are capable of it though almost any media capable phone should support it nowadays. I also had a problem a few years back buying a dongle whose stack didn’t support A2DP. There are still dongles/stacks available which don’t support it.

Yes it is know that there is a pixel qi and lcd version but what is not know is that is it the wide angled Pixel Qi. I believe it will be the wide angled one as a video made in june with the founder of pixel qi said the wide angled version was virtually ready and going into production. I will be really disappointed if it is not the wide angled Pixel qi as the non wide angle has a yellow tint!! Not nice!

Exactly. The Android OS is just the engine. It provides the basic functionality and the UI/user experience is decided by Notion Ink’s Eden. Kind of like choosing between Ubuntu vs. Gentoo, the kernel and basic functionality can be the same but the experience can be completely different.

I’m in the habit of plugging my cell phone (Lithium Ion battery) into my charger every night as I go to bed, even if it still has a 75% charge. As far a as I can tell that has not caused any problems and I always have a full charge in the morning that way.

I was under the impression that Lithium Ion batteries could be topped off and left in the charger without negative effects. Is that not true? I plan to do the same with the adam so it would be good to know beforehand.

That’s why they’re both called 3Qi as they’re just the same device, just the first gen and second gen so to speak. If I’m not mistaken it’s basically a case of the wide angle production replacing the older version’s production as soon as it was possible.

The first company I’m coming across – that too being a tech startup in India, which is making full use of crowd-sourcing – from colors to logos to feedback on construction and design, they’ve gotten thousands of fans (and eventual die-hard loyal customers) from across the globe involved with the Adam Tablet long before production!

Whether they actually conquer the Tablet Wars or not, Notion Ink will long be remembered and respected for making this paradigm shift in product development – to involve the end consumer and being open about everything right from the beginning.
Godspeed, Notion Ink!

I’m sure people here really don’t care for people who are out to prove the ‘vaporware’ theory.
All those theorists, please write down the theory in your own diary to show it to your folks later when Adam would already be out there doing what Rohan & Co have promised.

I have been pointing this device out to my m8’s with ipads since they came out,Telling them all they should have waited for this,
But it’s needs to get in to production soon before everbody buys some other tablet,Money in people’s pockets is getting less these days so when they choose they will not be buying again for a while.
I am still sat up my hands waiting to buy one of these.

Excellent point. I came to that same realization when I started to get hung up on what Google said about Froyo not being ready for tablets. I found that there are tablet manufacturers out there releasing tablets with Froyo (Android 2.2) and doing very little to customize it and make it work as a tablet OS. So those are the tablets Google is concerned about.

Notion Ink’s custom UI and other changes (Eden) address the short comings of Froyo and make it an excellent OS/UI for a tablet.

Actually i did not thought about the ppi. but after u asked i started thinking.

may be i am wrong, but the PPI is little different from 310 for 3072 by 600.

I will try to explain you why. The site Pratik cited takes three inputs- number of pixels in each direction and the display diagonal size. and it first calculates from the Pythagoreans theorem the display size and from there it calculates the PPI and pixels per inch square etc.

But the vital point here is it takes that your pixel size is square shaped (please check the top sentence in that website). so if you put 3072 by 600 for 10.1 inch display, it shows 310 ppi, but please check what is the display size. some strange display size (in one of the direction some 2″ or 5cm). This is only because it assumes square pixel size. since it calculates the wrong display size, hence the PPI calculation might be incorrect.

I do not think the display size changes. The change lies in the fact that the 1024 becomes 3072 (that is each pixel becomes three sub pixels) but 600 remains same (and hence of same size in that direction). so the pixel is no longer square it is a rectangular pixel. in this scenario, actually its the pixel per inch square which becomes important and rather easy to calculate than ppi.
so, 3072 by 600 pixels fit into same display size (8.71″ by 5.11″) and gives pixels per inch square of about 41420 (not 96041 as calculated from square pixel assumption). i do not know the ppi now, some more thoughts are needed to calculate it but perhaps mostly different from 310.

You can assume a matrix with number of columns as 1024 and number of rows as 600. you increase the number of columns by three times keeping the number of rows same. the matrix occupation size same. Perhaps easy to understand how the square pixels become rectangular in shape.

Please cross check the calculations and my understanding.

For @ Fabien, note that 41420 ppi square is very high compared to 13808 for 1024 by 600 resolution.

Don’t think so. Stylus support and handwriting (recognition) was never an issue in one of Rohan’s posts and I don’t believe (but probably I’m mistaken) that it is a major subject for most of the people here.
The “special” could (should?) be about the UI, which is the most important thing for like/dislike Adam.

This is Awesome! When ever I buy a computing device, the first thing I do is to, root it, jailbreak it, take it apart to add functionality, delete the OS and install a custom OS or ROM. I was planning on doing that for this device when I get one. But with every post, I’m realizing that this thing looks like it will do all that I want a tablet to do out of the box and I won’t need to tamper with it (other than rooting if I have to).
I get more excited every day, thanks Rohan!

One thing, I hope the Adam has an easy way to shutdown programs. I now have an Evo after 3 years with the iPhone and though I love it, I realize that the multitasking is a double-edged sword. There is no easy way to stop an app on the evo after you are done using it. There are usually no “Quit” functions in the apps and they remain running in the background unless you use something like “App Killer” to shut them down. This is a stupid solution! Why do so few android apps have “quit” buttons? One thing that was nice about the lack of multitasking on the iphone and it carries to the ipad is that when you switch apps, the other stops automatically. Not a great solution but it beats having to pull up task killer all the time. I don’t understand why google missed out on this very important function, those guys are supposed to be geniuses.

I have an ipad and out of the box it’s useless except for content consumption which it excels at. I too was completely annoyed with the ipad after the first day of trying to use it in the real world. I got so sick of fiddling with a simple .doc file a client sent me (wish they would stop with the doc files already) and trying to get it to display correctly that, I bought a bunch of games and gave it to my 5 year old daughter. I plan to use it as a babysitter and an expensive ereader while I wait for the Adam.

Well, I’m just repeating what I read a year ago when I got my current cell. Some say topping off doesn’t matter, some say it does. One thing they all agree on with Lithium Ion is not to let it discharge completely.

Here’s a post from the XDA site. I originally got my info from there but from another thread (which I can’t find right now as it’s older than this one). It provides sources so you can read more details if you wish:

This is the exact reason I’m waiting for the Adam and haven’t considered any other tablet at the moment. I’m a classical musician studying in school with just way too much sheet music, etude books, and orchestral parts to carry around. I already have pdf’s of most of the public domain music, I want to access it easily (and have a metronome app going on in the background hehe)

@Gecko – Actually, this concept is already offered, albeit for windows tablets and very soon the iPa*. I know the founder of http://www.AirTurn.com, who is a phenomenal pianist and is one of the staff accompanists at my school; he’s been using a windows Tablet for several years doing just this. I can’t wait to have the Adam and hopefully intrigue him enough into supporting android/adam’s Eden.

“It must not have occurred to him that the usb ports might only be for external storage”

If you are half of the resident _expert_ that you claim to be then you would notice Rohan talking about Adam supporting USB Keyboards in the earlier videos and posts. I think it’s even in the video blob posted on this page.

If they wait till CES, it will be too late, they would be unveling an android 2.2 device, while everyone else would be showing a Gingerbread device. They would lose all momentum.

Notion Ink adam will already be on the market this year, I predict, and they will be showing a gingerbread adam at CES.

Rohan said in any earlier blog, they couldn’t wait from gingerbread, they had to release a 2.2 froyo tablet, and then a 3.0 gingerbread. he knows he is under pressure to get it to market, before too many other tablets from the big manufuctures actually hit the market.

Actually, there have been MANY, MANY, MANY questions related to the stylus support and handwriting recognition over the last few months – from MANY followers here – none of which have been answered yet in any official manner from Rohan.

It meets all the specs, for gingerbread, but there is talk that gingerbread will not allow a customer UI to be used. I think that we will just have to wait and see what Googles final requirements are.

bottom line of my understanding, is it is open source, so they can clearly release adam with gingerbread, but they may be restricted from the google apps being pre-installed, like maps, docs, and of coarse the adroid market place.

I believe just from reading the blog all this last year. the Notion ink strategy is to develope their own environment, so that they don’t have to rely on google. They will have their own marketplace, and a large base of developers that will port/customize standard android apps, to work with the notion ink ui.

It is a risky strategy since, they will get poor reviews for not having the marketplace. the review will be something along the lines, they tablet is cutting edge and breakthrough, etc. then it will end with although Notion Ink has it own marketplace knows as genenis, it is still crippled by a lack of access to the broader android marketplace.

They really need to make sure they have killer apps at release. the longbox comics is a great start, and we already know they have a customer email app.

SSD no, it uses eMMC for its memory, plus an SSD could take up space which isn’t there unless it’s custom made. Heating shouldn’t be an issue, it normally isn’t with ARM devices. Hand grip there’s the curved back (unless you mean more along a lanyard in which I con’t know). The use of markets will depend on the market owners. There’s a good chance Google will block access to theirs but you can still use others but in order to get apps which are guaranteed to work 100% on the Adam and to take full advantage of its capabilities you’d need to get them from Genesis.

SSD no, it uses eMMC for its memory, plus an SSD could take up space which isn’t there unless it’s custom made. But there’s always transflash and USB ports to help out in that department. Heating shouldn’t be an issue, it normally isn’t with ARM devices. File system I’ve no idea but fat and fat32 are givens considering the MicroSD slot. Hand grip there’s the curved back (unless you mean more along a lanyard in which I con’t know). The use of markets will depend on the market owners. There’s a good chance Google will block access to theirs but you can still use others but in order to get apps which are guaranteed to work 100% on the Adam and to take full advantage of its capabilities you’d need to get them from Genesis.

Although the various battery types might each have their own characteristics, I believe that “in practice” it is much more fruitful in most regards to turn one’s mind towards the “software” part of the matter.

What I mean by this is that the main factor that contributes to a negative impact of a topped off charging is not the hardware type of battery that a device has been equipped with but rather whether the device has well-designed algorithms for managing the battery charge/usage/discharge life-cycle.

Many electrical appliances have poor battery statistics DESPITE using the best battery hardware because the device charges the battery indefinitely when plugged in. In contrast, other devices have sensors that measure the battery state (voltmeter etc..) and only direct current to the batteries if their charge drops below a certain threshold. The algorithms might also transfer charge between battery cells to increase their individual lifetime. In short: a device should have enough circuit logic to simulate the perfect charge-profile for a given battery type. This way, the user can forget about the specifics as long as he/she has the device in regular use.

If you want Adam to succeed in North America, you HAVE to make them available at Best Buy stores all over.

The reason iPad succeeded is coz of easy customer availability. I genuinely want Adam’s success. If people see it at Best Buy, it will fly off the shelves (given that the employees know about it, and they market it to the iPad customers).

If it’s not on the shelves, it going to JooJoo failure all over again.

Good news from battery life. Some news about release date ?? I really want to have it on my hands, and if doesnt release it soon I will end buying something else like Archos 101. I mean, I’m waiting about a year.

as an additional thought, any plans to have a pull out stand embedded in the back? So a use case could be you want it more angled at a meeting, or cafe, bedside slideshow, then pull out a little stand and up it goes. Can be rather simple, single hing with a flat plastic leg

ok, when is it coming out …?
how much does it cost in US?
i saw some price speculation on engadget are they true?
Just wrote a bad review on my samsung captivate, saying this because it is an android device … as good as it is a good piece of hardware .. the software on it sucks … i hope Notion ink will learn form the mistakes the android device makers are making and not repeat those … specially the hardware software interaction like GPS, Cellular signal, hard and soft buttons … adam looks promising… if it can make it to the market for this holiday season it will be great

Very excited on your long term plans for the Adam tablet now that more information is trickling out – one issue I have not seen addressed in any tablet discussion (except those using Windows 7 because of its inherent features) is support for multiple users. Will the Adam have any capabilities within the UI for that kind of use?

Unlike a mobile Android phone, a tablet PC is dying to be shared amongst different people in for example a household. But I would not want everyone to have access to the same “workspace” as me ideally; we all have our different needs so it ought to be possible to segregate the data, applications, browser favorites, E books etc possibly even to have some kind of parental control as to what can or can’t be done (- some family members are probably inherent ‘tinkerers’ which is not always a good thing for everyone else!). With say the iPad, this is one area that has been tackled in a very half-hearted manner by Apple through having certain universal settings of what can or can’t be done. So I can envisage a more fuller implementation as another differentiator. Not a feature merely for the sake of adding, but something genuinely useful. It is an issue crying out to be addressed IMO. I would be interested in hearing your thoughts on whether it’s something you are developing (or conversely whether you feel it’s something better left to Google to potentially look at in future Android tablet-centric versions).

That is one of the things I am excited about. I play a lot of open mic shows and know many songs, but have a hard time remembering lyrics. I usually carry a lot of paper around in my guitar case, which can be replaced by the adam.

Rohan mentioned several places that the screen with backlight uses over 2 watts. There’s no way he’s getting 15 hours with backlight and video playback on a 24 whr battery.
Maybe it’s with ultra low, but technically on backlight… I dunno, but not normal backlight at least.
Notice he doesn’t specifically talks about it… Rohan does these semi-lies and half-truths a lot and it’s getting on my nerves… hopefully the product will be good, though.

Nvidia says their tegra 2 takes around 500 mW for video playback… How you’d ever expect to get 160 hours on a 24 whr battery on that, is beyond me…. regardless of the screen.

Thanks for the info. I buy a lot of stuff from Monoprice and coincidentally I chatted with their tech department earlier today about a cable or adapter that might work. The only thing they have that will work is this HDMI to VGA adapter for $143.82:

For propping up : Why look for adding something more when you can achieve it by Removing something instead?
Let’s just put a small hole/groove in the back of the iPad as we see behind any photo frame, or small gripping arrangement along the top ridge, or two tiny slits on either side at the back. Then let the free market make the accessories that will make best use of it – no need for Notion Ink guys to worry about it or increase costs or size or material.
I don’t know how much space is there at the back, but just a little 3mm hole edging upwards would do the trick.
We can then fix it up it on the wall, fridge, car’s dashboard, make a simple stand to prop it up on!
And if no incisions allowed, then here’s a simple DIY solution: Velcro!

True, they can’t stop them using the OS as it’s Open Source. But if for any reasons the hardware requirements were above what the Adam has then it could lead to an inferior experience or to an even more fragmented experience with even less compatibility with outside apps. I doubt this will be the case as all signs point to the Adam fulfilling the hardware requirements but we’ll have to wait and see.

As for the apps. I would like to have the Google apps like maps and gmail without a doubt. Docs… I’ve had problems with google docs truth be told. The app market on the other hand… it depends on what I’d still have access to. I don’t need 70,000 apps, nobody does. What people do need are a few select apps that do what they want/need. Sometimes those few select apps can only be found among the 70,000. Sometimes they can be found elsewhere. If the apps included with the Adam are as good as we hope I will only be purchasing a few other apps and will focus more on media purchases (e-books, movies, etc.) Oh, and maybe some games :P

Also there’s the question of what Gingerbread brings to the table as the UI should not be an issue with NI’s customizations. Froyo 2.2 was the greatest leap forward in terms of performance with the JIT compiler, Flash, and some other stuff. Other stuff were things that were not included out of the box but could be incorporated by the OEM (an example is the wifi hotspot found on the 4G while it had Android 2.1).

In his twitter comment he even posted a link to a page claiming requirements including the death of custom ui’s. Custom UI’s will not be dead. They may have worked on the default UI to make custom UI’s less necessary but they are not killing them off.

If I remember correctly Nvidia’s claims are of 140 hours of music with the screen off (and I assume using headphones). 16 hours using HDMI output but then again they never mentioned battery size.

@Thomas, Rohan said that’s what HE’S getting (that’s not a half-lie nor a half-truth. Only anecdotal in nature). Not the result from battery stress tests. And 15 hours is feasible. It’s 2 watts at full brightness. For 15 hours he’d require a power consumption of 1.6 watts. Let’s say the screen was at about half brightness so 1.1 watts, and the video was not the MOST taxing it could be for the decoder chip so .4 watts and then you’d have a whole .1 left over for the headphones.

this old image of adam… reminds me of my kindergarten slate book….
what happend to the borders.. it seems so thick … when i saw a video clip in youtube, the borders were really thin…now its not looking good, man…. i know you have put lots of feature into this small device.. but at the EOD, looks are very important as it is a portable device… hope you will look into improving its looks… all the best !

Oh, it wasn’t criticism elmelao. I don’t think they had picked it up at the time you posted but considering that Slashgear has given generally good press (without going all fanboy) for Notion Ink I thought that they deserved to be mentioned (unlike engadget which constantly refers to it as vaporware and tends to have a derisive tone towards it).

Rohan Where are the pics you promised way back. The ones that were going to show the colours and textures. The thinner border- Matt glass etc etc??
Because you are not showing any pics it makes me think you are not happy with the look and feel of the Adam?? Is this the case?

Hi!
really an interesting product! I would like to know if you plan to do a 7″ version?
the pixelQI tranflective screen coupled with the battery life open new world for people like me that use this kind of device outdoor while trekking….
10″ is too huge to put in the pocket….. 4″ n800 is good for portability but a little to small in displayed area….. and of course not sunlight readable…. 7″ seems to be a good size

“Rohan Where are the pics you promised way back. The ones that were going to show the colours and textures. The thinner border- Matt glass etc etc??
Because you are not showing any pics it makes me think you are not happy with the look and feel of the Adam?? Is this the case?”

Running pc games is not possible on tegra 2 based processor, if you really want to run anything you will have to spend some time porting the game for android and arm based processors.
But all the games available on android specially games created by nvedia and latter on upcoming game engines will give you one hell of gamin experience.

I am working with my friends on developing a game for tegra 2 chips (well its mainly for Adam’s marketplace) and the graphics would be excellent but we do not have complete team right now.
If there is any story writer(we have a basic plot, just need need someone to write the script) or 3d artist over here who would love to work with us please let us know.
at rv7373@yahoo.com
Also we don’t really need experts, any one with a will to learn and work can contact us.

+1 Please rohan we really need a good quality pic of adam (i know that what u have right now is the pre production version) but even the good picture of them can really make my week :-), and i know that u have hard time to prepare the site, forums and the SDK but let say that we hope that u can find sometime to take some nice pic and put them online :-)

for that we need some one to create some sort of emulator and its not that simple! for the old game console we already have some acceptable emulators on market but for the PC games i didn’t find anyone who try to do it! well it will take some time to create something like that! lets hope that some one at EAP will do it!

Thanks again for the info. However I do not think those devices will work because they still do not do a digital to analog Conversion which is necessary to got from HDMI to VGA.

It’s been a while since I checked into it, but I’m pretty sure The DVI adapters that convert to VGA simply use the DVI output pins that carry the analog signal, and they ignore the DVI output pins carrying the digital signal (ie: DVI can output both digital and analog signals over the same connector – someone correct me if I am wrong).

So those adapters are changing the connector type by using the digital signal when using HDMI and DVI, and retaining the analog signal when using DVI and VGA.

Nice to hear that it can play directly from USB. But still there is one problem, what is the maximim current that can be drwan from USB? I want to know If I’ll be able to connect my portable external HDD which takes power directly from USB itself :)

thanks for the gold mine! I suggest reading all the comments there actually… just the article leaves one with more questions! even after reading thru the comments am a bit dazed now .. to kill or not to kill…ala Arjuna in the battlefield to fire arrows at his cousins or not to :) Rohan aka Lord Krishna gave us the ‘chakra’ aka Eden so hopefully we dont have to worry too much here :)

If you are referring to bluetooth in general it can be used for many many things such as keyboards, file transfers etc.

If you are referring to bluetooth on the adam I doubt they would limit it to audio only, surely file transfers will be supported at least. The question is how well will it interact with accessories since there’s no way of knowing exactly what profiles the bluetooth stack handles until either we get it in our hands or Rohan tells us :)

@ tintincub
“Google, Genius and UI Design never exist together in the same sentence.”
There is no bigger fan of Google then I am, but sadly, i have to agree with this. After playing around with my Evo 4g for two weeks now, both rooted and unrooted, I have to say that UI design is not Google’s strong point. I also would like to add after giving the unrooted version of Evo’s android a fair chance, that Sprint needs to stay out of the software business.
Hopefully Rohan and the guys will do better to address Android’s UI issues.

@Nik
“I dont think ‘iPad’ and ‘great’ should go together in a sentence either.”
Let’s be fair, the iPad sucks terribly for even the barest content creation use, but for consumption, it excels. My five year old daughter is able to just pick it up and use it without any guidance from me. And as a newsreader it’s awesome. I know that Rohan and the boys are tied to the 6:9 proportions, but there is a lot to be said for 4:3. Especially when reading books and newspapers.

What I like about the Adam is that it will be great for content consumption, but it looks like it will also be good for the kind of content creation one does when they are out and about.

Is anyone else concerned about being able to buy one once they become available because of the limited number Notion Ink will be able to build each month?

I sure hope Rohan will be looking out for us early, early adopters! (I say “early, early adopters” because many of us have already adopted the Adam even though it isn’t even available yet.)

@Rohan, if at all possible, please make the Adam available to us early early adopters ahead of the general public.

I’m not sure how you can best do that, but one idea may be to create a mailing list of all the email addresses associated with those who have posted on this blog and then use that mailing list to notify us ahead of time with a pre-sales offer…

I thought about the EAP program as a way to get an Adam, but many of us did not apply for the EAP because we are not developers and we see the need for those EAP slots to be filled by qualified developers that will contribute to the ecosystem by creating top quality apps for Adam.

But just because we are not developers, that is not to say we aren’t contributing. I bet the majority of us early, early adopters have convinced countless others to consider buying an Adam when they were planning to purchase some other tablet. We have been spreading news and information on the Adam like a wild fire. (Hence my concern about there not being enough available to meet demand.)

I will be really disappointed if I miss the opportunity to buy one as soon as they become available and then get stuck waiting for one because there isn’t enough to go around…

One other related thought. I’m planning on buying the fully loaded Pixel Qi / 3G model (with the most internal storage available if there is a choice in capacity). I bet most people are too. If that is the case then I hope you will be producing more of them and less of the LCD and WiFi-only models. Maybe a poll is in order to determine which model most people plan to purchase.

Anyway, thanks again for all that you and Notion Ink are doing. We really appreciate it. And please keep us in mind when it comes time for pre-sales.

I am with Greg. I am one of those who published their private email address on the Facebook site when Notion Ink required us to do so (doesn’t this make me a “super-early user”?)! Therefore, I would be disappointed as well if this it not taken into account after so many months of support (and faith!)
It would be great if Notion Ink finds a way to recognize the super-early users and let us be able to be the ones to buy it!

No ironiy at all. As Lita her(? sorry)self says: there were many questions from followers and I know that very well. But the fact that Rohan never mentioned this subject is enough for me to believe that this isn’t a serious issue for NI. I can understand that there are people which like to interact with Adam using a stylus but there are many other wishes as well from other people and Adam can’t do all of this at the envisaged price.
Adam will have a trackpad, an ingenious display, a far better battery life than every other slate will have, a USB hub for keyboard and mouse support and for external storage, HDMI out and so forth. This is a lot more than every other pad out there, doesn’t matter if already on the market or only announced.
It’s easy for me to say (as I don’t have any need for the requested stylus matter), but we should very very satisfied if everything which is announced yet for the Adam comes true and probably wait for Adam II for an even more sophisticated tablet.

And, by the way: it should be possible to make inputs with a special stylus (for capacitive screens) on every touchdevice, the handwriting recognition is a matter of 3rd party software.

Nice calculation, but I suppose that’s without any use, because Adam (or Tegra) will probably (?) not be able to address every of the then 3072 pixels in a row or, more likely, the display doesn’t allow to address the additional pixels.
The three RGB subpixels, side by side, add up to a squared pixel and in b/w mode there will be simply one squared black (or white) pixel, which consists of three rectangular subpixels of the same black or white mode, so you get – practically and theoretically – 3072 pixels horizontally which behave the same way as 1024 pixels because they are only addressable in groups of three.

if I were Rohan I would take up on the offer to provide pre-order links to us, for the simple reason that you religiously typed early early adopters that many times! infact there is a mistake in the last sentence where-in ‘us’ was used instead of early early adopters… now that its corrected, please say yes, Rohan.

I suggest Notion Ink sets up a LIVE Office Cam (something like TechCrunch did or more recently Team COCO). It will only be a video feed (no audio) so your trade secrets can remain secrets. But for us fans/potential customers it would be a great way to be a part of the experience.

Previously we used to have dumb terminals to connect to servers. Something similar in concept, if I have a really powerful desktop, Can I use ADAM as WOID? So that ADAM will act as Monitor and Keyboard-Mouse. If we can do this then we will get mobility (limited) and also the power of computing. We might be able to do CPU intensive coding or we might be able to access all kinds of software installed on desktop but also we can move around freely. If we have multiple ADAMs, we might be able to play network games.

Readings specs of ADAM, I get a feeling that “theoretically” ADAM has all the capabilities to do the intended operation, but I don’t know if we need a special app or additional devices (for the desktop to communicate).

If there is a real chance of being sold out then I don’t think it should be only for people here. Have a limited number of pre-order slots and they can choose how to give them be it random or otherwise. The reason I say this is because if they get it out for the Christmas season it would be really good to have a market presence in stores and with regular buyers. If it came out in November and they could have another shipment for December then that’d be smashing :D

well, many external hard drives/enclosures have a dual pronged USB wire in case they need extra power. If they’re long enough they should be able to connect to both on the Adam in order to provide the necessary power requirements (the problem being it’d need to be long as the ports are on either side of the Adam and not together.

@Mindlt There are several way to do what you are talking about but maybe the simplest way is ssh or screen or svn with some more option what it is normally possible under Linux but under android its another story since android don’t use X-server. but its possible (i already test it) to use your Adam as Input device or any other android device and really simple to write.

For using Adam as an output device you can use VNC solutions which i dont really like them but it still a solutions! :-) i hope i answer your question!

I am also in agreement with Greg. I plan on (can’t wait!) buying the fully loaded Pixel Qi/3G model asap, and have been following the Adam from early stages. Notion Ink does have our email addresses via this blog, and I do hope they use such to create a pre-order system of some sort; we are the best people to put it through its early paces. We’ve collectively offered a wide variety of opinions, advice and offers to moderate forums, proof user manuals, etc. etc. etc. … as well as spreading the word.

Thanks to Notion Ink for all the hard work; please don’t forget we’re willing to help!

next thing we may see folks commenting on everything else other than the Adam! ‘cos I bet NI would not be allowed to get their live cams anywhere near an Adam in the first place… so if anything we may want to see everyone at NI (assusming they all work from office) are hale and healthy so that they could push out Adam on time… not that we will start leaving paracetamol tabs or some high calorie food/drinks at NI’s doorsteps if we do ‘see’ someone weakly crouching in a chair

its one of the least bloged items from Rohan.. but he will sure get there eventually as he did promise to balance both h/w and s/w in his next posts

but just from the earliest videos we’ve seen most likely it does everything a normal front-facing trackpad does… ideally we want NI to partner with witpad to optimize it but we will see if NI already has any in-house s/w kit already for that

There is youtube video of Rohan from back in June, he talks about it, and shows what it looks like. He did say it was a whole new experience and took some getting used to, but it wasn’t hard and once you got the hang of it, it was worth it. He has been using it for at least six months now, so I am sure they have worked out the bugs.

The video link was posted in the blog here a few days ago. but with so many recent comments on the last couple of blog entries, I can’t find it right now.

I think that after a successful market introduction during december/january – as we all here think/hope – during 2011 we need not just one adam model (in different display/connectivity flavours), we need at least three!! :-)

I like the idea of a fingerprint sensor. I have one on my HP notebook that works really well. Though unless it is somehow built into the screen or rear trackpad of the Adam, I think we would have spotted it by now…

My guess is that the mystery sensor determines the position of the camera so that the image retains the correct orientation when the camera is swiveled from front to back. Without a sensor like that the image would appear upright when the camera faces front and then upside down when the camera is swiveled to the rear.

Rohan, please post some quality pics/videos of the adam in action. Hoping for more of an update prior to the weekend! I too vote for early pre-registration for those who have been participating on the blog. :)

That’s a great idea about the poll to see what model most people are planning on getting, because I (apparently like many people) am planning on getting the max hd capacity pixel qi/3G version. If a poll showed most followers were also going for that model, they might want to tweak their manufacturing plans.

Also, I too have been following the Adam’s progress since last January and have told pretty much everyone I know to wait and buy one, so I definitely hope the die hards are able to get them as soon as they’re available! (Hopefully before Christmas) :)

I know I may be late to the party with this question, but over the months I haven’t seen the answer crop up (and to be honest, I’ve been too busy being impressed overall with the device).

Can it print? I have yet to see an indication thus – sure there are USB, but an appropriate Android driver for everything isn’t an option (at least yet), unless it can be ported from a similar linux kernel.

Rather, I’m more curious about whether the Bluetooth standard for printing will be used at launch, or if that’s a “wait and see” kind of thing?

I gather from levpius’ earlier comment there is no present indication that this is a go or not.

What I think would be a nice addition, and still not clutter up the I/O ports too much would be to have something like I have on my WDTV Live player, or like what some of the newer android phones have (like my Galaxy S phone)… video out via the 3.5mm jack. This way, for those that dont have a tv with an HDMI port, you can still hook it up that way and get video. There are two possiblilties. Either have it output composite video with stereo audio, and/or possilbly offer component video (RGB or YPbPr).

Ideally, if it could still be added, would be to include 2 3.5mm headphone jacks, so you could watch your videos on the adam with someone sitting next to you, allowing both to plug in their own headphones. This feature alone has come in handy using my laptop to watch movies on a plane ride, without having to remember to grab the headphone splitter .
This could also allow for software switching one to Composite video and stero audio for older, SD TVs, and one for Component video for older HD(ready) TVs that dont have a hdmi or dvi port, while you could still use the audio out from the other headphone jack.

At the minimum, while two headphone jacks would be nice, I would suggest at least including the ability to switch the jack to Composite SD video output with stereo audio (Yellow, Red and White RCA connectors) if the chipset being used allows for it, as I know I can do this on my current Android phone. The cable for doing this is also very simple and relatively inexpensive, as it is just a 3.5mm to 3x RCA cable (no specialized hardware at all)

Anyway, this is just wishful thinking, and I am still looking forward to being able to buy an adam tablet, regardless of whether or not anything like this is included, although this would allow greater connectivity for devices with older technology if they were included.

Hi!
No Hdmi-in….
I am upset.
in specification on the official site – simply “HDMI” Without specifications in or out-only….
I continued to hope that i can to connected Adam with my nettop and my VideoDSLR camera, to conroll the focus when i shoot film. because my VideoDSLR camera have HDMI-out….

In the all world a thousand people with wont a hdmi-in in tablet.
why? Because it Will give us chance to refuse from over devices.
ink-display it’s revolution – one device include two: e-book and tablet
but only one port hdmi-in can created a second wave of revolution e-book + tablet+ external monitor in one device

Ugh. I had an HP tx1000z series comp (can’t remember the exact model but it was the highest end for a while) but the fingerprint sensor was horrible. More than half the time it wouldn’t recognize my fingers when I swiped then but it would then accept my elbow and arm or palm as valid “fingerprints” when they brushed against it. SO inaccurate. Course that was just me and with a specific device, don’t know how good they are with others…

The camera makes sense but I also wonder what else it could be :) RFID could be neat but I honestly wouldn’t have a use for it personally.

I too hope to get that version, though depending on finances at the date of launch and exactly what means I would need to employ in acquiring it I’d be willing to settle for 16GB or losing 3G if it’s not compatible with my carriers.

@Elmelao, Greg, better make that productive/supportive/constructive posters or we’ll suddenly get a flood of posts from people trying to rack up their #s :P

@ Pj, it has been done in the past. There was a dosbox port to my old motorola linux based phone running an ARM Intel Xscale pxa270 processor. It was as slow as hell and even the ORIGINAL Prince of Persia was unplayable but it was done and with the newer hardware old classic (OLD as in Sierra Space Quest and co.) games should be possible. If anyone decides to program it of course…

Have been following this blog (silently) for a very very long time. Now that it’s nearing production I can hardly contain my excitement.

All credit to Rohan and NI for their effort and vision.

I am really interested to know how we can order and purchase one of these? I am in Singapore and being a booger on the world map, I can’t imagine this market to be high on the list of NI. What are the channels from which we can purchase an adam?

You mentioned that there would be ‘n’ number of panels which can be flipped (or swiped) to display 3 contiguous ones at a time. Would it be possible to pin one or two of the panels so that they do not get flipped? A simple use case would be to have certain applications on the UI all the time while flipping / swiping through the rest. This would be a general use case for multi-tasking.

If that’s accurate then I don’t feel that there is a major need for Gingerbread on the Adam.
It states:
Google is focusing on three major categories in Gingerbread, Molchanov said. One is look and feel; the second is video chat; and the third is hardware acceleration.
The look and feel is not an issue as the Adam uses a custom UI and Notion Ink have tailored it to work properly.
Video chat, I assume it will be better integrated but shouldn’t be a major issue as it seems to be a consideration for the Adam considering comments and the swivel camera.
Hardware acceleration: It has already been confirmed that the Adam will be using Open GL hardware acceleration.

Finally they actually say:
“There’s still nothing fundamentally groundbreaking in this release,”

If the article is right, we Froyo should be fine for a while, even when others have Gingerbread. I am not saying there shouldn’t be an upgrade, just that it might not be a huge differentiator like many think if the article Jadefalcon linked is right.

My daughter has a new HP laptop with fingerprint security; it works great, so far …. to keep her 3 year old son OUT … so far it’s the ONLY thing that’s been able to keep him out :) I vote it will be something to do with that swivel camera, but NI has been inventive enough they might surprise all of us.

@ Tarwinia,
I agree with you completely. My only reason for posting was that if Gingerbread is released by year’s end maybe the adam will come with it already installed. In an earlier post Rohan said, something like, soon we will see some connection with Google? I’ve always wondered what that meant.

Rohan, I will buy TWO of these (for all that’s worth) at LAUNCH (assuming they’re not sold out instantly) if that thing can play MKV natively. I don’t care if it can’t handle certain H.264 types, it will still be priceless with that ability.

Stagefright has enough flexibility for it and I’m a little dissapointed that Google didn’t add it right off the bat with 2.2

When I heard the adam’s ui was optimized that’s what I was thinking. One problem I see is that any apps made for Gingerbread won’t work on adam. At least until they upgrade to Gingerbread. Also, tablets that have Gingerbread will use it as a selling point. Some people will see adam with Froyo and go for the one with Gingerbread. Regardless if the performance is better or not.

The article also says that they don’t know if it will be called 2.3 or 3.0. I was under the assumption that it was already decided it was 3.0. And aimed at tablets.

I don’t know if a poll here would be best. Many of us have been following NI for awhile. So we may be more inclined to buy the top model. I don’t know how indicative it would be to the general population. I was thinking they could look at the Ipad and see which version sells best. However, the Ipad with wifi is about 600 dollars. The one with with wifi/3g is 729 dollars. With adam, from what we’ve heard, there’s a smaller difference in price. So someone might go for the high end version just because it’s not that much more.

Actually there’s been “lots” of recent speculation on different sites whether Gingerbread will be 2.3 or 3.0. You’re right though, if it’s sold as 3.0 different companies will use it as a selling point and might sway buyers who know nothing on the subject other than what’s on the box. If it comes out as 2.3 it might not sway as many people as it wouldn’t sound like such a big difference. Then again if Notion Ink market the adam as running on “Eden with Android” or something of the sort they might be able to avoid the mention of 2.2 and skirt the issue.

@Jadefalcon I doubt it, they also said in (I think later) posts that it’d be releasing with Froyo 2.2 and that they hoped to upgrade to Gingerbread as soon as possible.

There’s no doubt in my mind whether I’ll buy an adam when it becomes available. I’ll buy the higher end unit although I doubt I’ll use the 3G aspect for some time. I’ll probably use wifi, however, to print documents/photos and be able to share files on the other computers in my home network. Mostly, though, I want adam as a document reader. I am on my third Sony E-Reader now, having worn out or overused two PRS 600s. Sony quit making the PRS 600, so now I have the PRS 650, basicly a less buggy PRS 600.

I want adam as an e-reader and GPS for now. As I become more familiar with him and all the fantastic apps my fellow blog readers are contemplating, I’m certain to become more dependent on my little electronic slave.

I’ve been lurking behind the sidelines for many months now, not an expert and in awe of several contributors to these blogs. Almost all correspondents are full of wants.. demanding, it seems to me, pictures, videos, specifications, special consideration for being an early-early respondent to the blog. I want to give special mention to three of you folks.

Tarwinia is not only extremely knowledgeable but is a kind and compassionate soul, always ready to help.

U all say u want all the works to be displayed, apart from those 40′s selected.
Many who aren’t up there, have also put quite an effort, few very Impressive Works.

I say what if we fans persue team NI with the resolution below:-

Apart from the finalized Official Logo on 28th Oct.
What if we persue NI to come out with a scheme of “Special Limited Edition Adam’s” buy outs espically for those fan’s who have all participated & contributed for the ‘LOGO CONTEST’. Give them all (participating fans) a choice to choose from some 100 logo’s filtered out of those 4500 by NI team. If not the discounts which is left for those 43.

The fans won’t mind spending some extra BUK’S for those “Limited Editions” & get their choice of Logo’s (Maybe a choice to select even their own) printed
‘ALONG WITH THE OFFICIAL LOGO’.

This way it’s a WIN-WIN situation 4 all those fans who are not-selected/ selected & NI.
Every 1 goes happy! Notion Ink is hailed by its fans! And the word spreads even faster in the Tablet’s market, of the Cool looking limited Adams! Notion Ink gets even more famous with such marketing plans & the word spread outside through fan’s.

Plz! Vote +1 if you agree with this. And make your point heard to Rohan! :-)

Rohan, there are a lot of tablets releasing in November – December. Atleast they have announced a release date. Please release some official ‘2nd level of design’ photos and if possible give a release date. Though none of the tablets are as promising as yours, they give confidence that they are going to be released. Adam is a sure winner but if you don’t give some numbers and pictures (if possible, videos), surely you would be losing some of the customers. I’m sure all of us who follow your blog would wait. but there are a lot of people who do not know about Notion Ink Adam.

Please post some good resolution pictures with reference objects like the one posted in “Inception” post. and also atleast an approximate time of release.

It would be nice if we could (pre)order to get the first batches (much like exopc did with their tablet) however I would hate to see the whole product to get delayed because of this. (We are not dealing with a mega corporation that can dedicate 10,50 or 100 people) to deal with this.

I vote for a pre-order limited at first to viewers of this blog. Perhaps just by announcing it on a weekend update. Could arrangements be made with Best Buy that they would accept pre-orders, without announcing it themselves. Perhaps for a week or two. I am sure word would leak out, but it would give us a few days to get our orders in. Since I, as most others, check this blog at least daily, there would be no excuse for not getting orders in on time.
Thanks again for developing such a fine device. I will opt for PQ and 3G

@Tarwinia Mine is a HP 8710W and I have had it about 3 years so the fingerprint sensor has had a lot of use and it isn’t the latest technology. But it has worked flawlessly for me… I have heard of lots of fingerprint sensors having problems so if NI ever decided to incorporate one into the Adam, I hope they find one as good as the one on my notebook.

I agree with Kaylan and have asked many times for at least some official ‘2n level’ design photos but get no response. These updates are great and very informative but must not be at the expense of actual media of the adam or UI itself.
We are all desperate for the adam except it is all based on a concept and videos almost a year old.The new photos leave a lot to be desired in both quality of the actual photo and of the adam itself. If the adam looks like the photos we were shown a month ago i for one won’t be ordering it as it looked “plasticky”,too large bezel, far too glossy screen and overall poor quality finish.
Rohan assured everyone (and i want to believe him) that this was just the first stage and IInd stage on the 22nd of oct would be of much higher quality including better textures of the paint. We were promised photos showing this but so far none!
From this I can only assume 2 things:
That they are too busy to post a high quality photo or they are not happy with the overall look and feel (i hope it is the first).
I am desperate to get a tablet and desperate to get the adam but can’t hold on forever waiting for something that i don’t even no exists in the form that I imagine.
I don’t want to come across too impatient but it is very frustrating – which is why I ask again- Rohan, PLEASE JUST POST A HIGH QUALITY PIC of the adam to dispel any worries we may have and so we can wait for the adam in the knowledge that you are producing the amazing,high quality product that we all are hoping for- Thank you.

Dude, you can switch off screen backlight to save power. I’d throw a educated guess, that on such platform one can also switch off WiFi/3G/BT/etc.
BTW On some platvorms WiFi and BT off switching is also marketed a security feature, so 3G off switching should not be any different. Hence, it should be nobrainer, even if it doesn’t have it’s own button.

I second that pre-orders only to blog followers for a limited time. I noticed NI back at the beginning of the year and when I saw that this was delayed in July I was sorely disappointed. I have been checking this blog every day since the beginning of September. I am ready for it to come out already. The adam seems like an excellent portable device for an engineering student when I don’t want to drag my laptop around.

I more worried about the former. I don’t think we are going to see any high quality photos/videos until NI (and of course the investors or whoever is also calling the shots) is completely satisfied with the finished product. I am not sure if they are there yet. Rohan’s next update might shed more light on this.

I vote for the alcohol meter. It can also prevent you from sending drunken texts to your ex. I see two implementations: 1) built in tech to the screen, breath on it with alcohol on your breath and it’ll black out for an our or two giving it a chance to get out of your system, 2) needles stick out of the honeycomb mesh on the curved back and test your blood (it’d be what? only 20 or 30 needles hitting your palm?)
:p

Or how about the one to counter Apple’s fart apps? A fart sensor finally answering the age old question of who dealt it.

It could also be a virus sensor. This way you could know if the person you lent it to has any zombie-fying virus which will give you a craving for brains. MMMMMmmmmm, braaaains…

@Meno of course it is possible, Ubuntu(Debian) already have all the driver for wifi/3g and camera (for wifi and 3g i am sure but for cam it depends) and even know with the new Ubuntu interface you have multi-touch support! but the only point that can be disappointing can be the battery life but for that we need an Adam to test everything and so we can make a review! ;-)

@tarwinia you are right. but dos emulator is more more simpler than a normal PC game emulators you have less instruction so its simpler to write an emulator for that! i never say its impossible i say thats not something you can do in a week or even a month alone! :-) i really hope that someone do it! lets just cross the finger and hope that we have an expert in EAP ;-).

@Mindlt even if under windows i have no idea how can it work but under linux you can send information, images or anything else to the vnc server so you can see on your adam what you already have on your computer or you can send what you want to your adam screen! the last time i try it, its been really complicated and you need several hack to be able to do it thats why i say that i don’t like them! i am trying to find a simple way to do it, it will be an app on genesis ;-) don’t worry!

I think airplane mode can be safe to assume. Think of it this way, it is actually a necessary function on some planes and in certain settings/environments, not including it would be irresponsible and limiting. Copy paste was a productivity function which did not affect the world “outside” the device, radio signals are not.

My post hasn’t appeared and it’s been a while so here goes again (sorry if it shows up a lot later). We haven’t seen the on-screen keyboard. The video David refers to (among others showing the Adam) shows the default Android on-screen keyboard. He mentions in some video that they are going to put their own keyboard on it but we won’t see that until we get some more in-depth views of it (be it photos or videos).

Wow, this is so way off. Best Buy had very little to do with the iPad’s success. Best Buy and Wal-Mart will help Apple quickly penetrate the market further and faster given them a huge entrenched lead, which is what they want. They would like to be the default tablet operating system that most apps are written for. But, Best Buy played very little role in their success.

Now, for the Adam, distribution will be far more important because they don’t have all the advantages that Apple has in that department. Plus, it will be important for people to be able to touch and feel the device. For the most part, their are Apple buyers and everyone else. Everyone else will touch and feel the devices, compare all the features and functionality, determine the company’s viability (big deal for Notion Ink), compare price, etc. So, having a tangible distribution outlet is very useful.

Is anyone else bummed about the overall aesthetics of the Adam. I think all the features and functionality are cool. I love that they are using the Pixel Qi, but the thing still looks like a brick. It looks just like my 4 year old HP laptop.

I think the visual appeal, in this marketspace, is going to be very crucial. And, the Adam just doesn’t really have the cool, tablet/pad curb appeal–particularly with the battery hump on the back.

And, this of course, is going to be a huge limiting factor for the Adam. This is the problem that Palm has/had and they had a big brand and following. I think HP is even having the same problems/concerns, which is why you haven’t seen an HP/Palm WebOS tablet/pad released yet even though they are releasing an HP Windows 7 tablet.

Developer support and ongoing company viablity is critically important. If the company fails or the device does not get huge traction, it will never be updated to future generations. And, if it can’t run the existing Android app library, you lose a lot of the advantage of going with the Google Android operating system. Notion Ink should do as much as they can to make the device as compatable to the Android app library as possible (does the 16:9 format effect this much?).

I don’t need the 3G either. Though I have thought of getting that model. Doesn’t cost that much more and it would be nice to have it if I ever needed it. Maybe if I was going camping or something where I wouldn’t have wifi.

Thank you billybob. Nice of you to say so. I agree with you about Tarwinia! I hope Crystal will come back when they get the forums up. I’m sure moderators will not put up with tintincub’s demeaning attitude. And he will either straighten up or be banned.
Glad you posted and hope to see you post more. It’s a nice diverse little community we have here. Love to hear other people’s experiences and expectations.

The Adam is supposed to boast 14 hours battery life by default so that does not worry me.

Say Ubuntu eats twice or even three times as much battery than the default OS it still would be a respectable battery life for an everyday device for use at home and work locations. I do not expect to use it 10 hours in a row without charging it.

I would very much like a test of installing Ubuntu (with Unity interface) on Adam as soon as possible.

I think it doesn’t really matter you can find all the app in the market online and with the 2.2 version of android you can even send the app you have on your android device to other people or to yours Adam ;-) ! But anyway i think that it could be simpler if we can access to Market from Genesis!

but in the android forums the say :

Any mobile device that can access the Market, as defined herein.

so i think if its not there you can have in on your device with a simple hack :-D!

Engineer samples of Android 3.0-loaded tablet PCs to be ready in December

Oct 19, 01:35

Google has recently notified its partners that the Android 3.0 operating system (OS) will soon be completed with the related tablet PC engineer samples set to show up in December, according to sources from notebook players.

If I used the adam for nothing else, it would be for downloading and reading PDF's (journal articles) and taking notes on them. I am an academic researcher, and I think there was an earlier excellent post by another academic describing these uses. A bonus would be a good interface with a wand scanner to do PDF creation and then text recognition (incorporate searchable text into PDF).

@billreyn or others : Thinking of buying whatever is the high end(3G+ Pixel Qi).
No one seems to be talking about Pixel Qi being thicker. You think Pixel Qi will lose much on the sleekness-quotient? I think the difference may not be much(i’d say 3 mm to 6mm).

“Tarwinia said, on October 26, 2010 at 21:11 If there is a real chance of being sold out then I don’t think it should be only for people here. Have a limited number of pre-order slots and they can choose how to give them be it random or otherwise. The reason I say this is because if they get it out for the Christmas season it would be really good to have a market presence in stores and with regular buyers. If it came out in November and they could have another shipment for December then that’d be smashing ”

Isn’t it basically already too late to be out for Christmas? Certainly through the retail channel, it’s too late. But, if all went well, it could possibly be sold online assuming they already have wireless carriers lined-up. But, my understanding is that they still need FCC approval and it likely hasn’t been submitted yet. You would then need to get production issues worked out and testing and the developer network (which, didn’t it really just get picked), etc.

I wouldn’t hold my breath for Christmas. Which is really a shame because that’s missing a massive opportunity. How many people are going to get some kind of tablet this year for Christmas? Tons!

@levpius
The difference is less than 2mm apparently (3 to 6mm would be a HUGE difference considering the device is 14mm thick). According to pda.db the difference is exactly 1.3mm while the old specification pdf’s from Notion Ink state a difference of 1mm between the two variants.

milsnake said “Isn’t it basically already too late to be out for Christmas?” Accoriding to slashgear, it depends on FCC approval (http://www.slashgear.com/notion-ink-adam-pricing-and-more-1297402/ … paragraph right after video demo). If approved in November, Notion Ink claims that they will start shipping to US immediately. If not approved until late December early January, they will not start shipping until CES 2011.

I think you’re correct Abhi. adam can be the best tablet in the world and it can fail if local availability isn’t part of marketing.

I’ve written email to Notion Ink explaining I’m done with adam for this reason. Ordering online in December won’t do. People need to know they can take their electronic in to be fixed. I prefer ‘Computers Plus’ store for purchases in my area. I may use ‘Best Buy’ to sample products but I no longer buy from them.

Apple is great at marketing. While visiting our daughter in El Cerrito California six weeks ago I went to the San Francisco store on a Saturday. I was jammed pack. I looked at everything so I went upstairs and there was about thirty people attending an Apple class. A company doesn’t have to be adam to win if they have customer service while Notion Ink is some company they don’t know.

Great reviews won’t help if availability is an issue. Computers are consumer items now and consumer items are available in stores where you can touch the product, even if you find a great deal online.

Do you have to hook the Adam up to your pc to get Internet acces? If you do then I think you should look into that, I almost bought the I pad when I was on YouTube and saw this thining, WOW I talked to some friends and watched some videos …some that were very believing and if I don’t have to hook the Adam up to my pc to get Internet acces I will look into the Adam and probably buy it!
Thanks,
a fellow reader

Regarding your other post, tripling one dimension (1024 -> 3072). That’s really a nice feature, but if the other “direction” resolution stays the same (600), won’t it create some visual artefacts or strange situation where reading in landscape would look great and portrait would seem poorer (or the reverse)?